J'entreprends ma ville - Unveiling of the Opinion Paper by the Conseil Jeunesse de Montréal on Youth Entrepreneurship

MONTRÉAL, May 21, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - The members of the Conseil Jeunesse de Montréal (CJM) unveiled their latest opinion paper, "J'entreprends ma ville", this morning at Notman House in front of members of the business community. The paper examines the state of youth entrepreneurship in Montreal. During the course of its study, the CJM explored the business community's recent evolution over the last few years, and changes in the services available to the next generation of business people.

"When we started, our objective was to provide an assessment of youth entrepreneurship. Now, having completed our study, we can confirm there are a number of improvements the City could make in order to make the most of Montreal's entrepreneurial potential. This analysis of the City's role is all the more timely given that the Fondation de l'Entrepreneurship's Quebec 2015 Entrepreneurial Index reports that 20.9% of young people in urban settings intend to start their own businesses, but only 9.9% of them actually take the necessary steps. It is crucial that we think of ways to encourage future entrepreneurs to put their ideas into action, and identify what might be discouraging them," stated the President of the Conseil Jeunesse de Montréal.

For its study, the CJM contacted numerous organizations and community stakeholders and asked seasoned entrepreneurs for their opinions, which permitted it to prepare an analysis of the conditions facing the next generation of Montréal entrepreneurs. "The concrete recommendations in the opinion paper, aimed at creating ways of eliminating obstacles facing young entrepreneurs, have been endorsed by several key members of Montréal's business community, including Louis-Philippe Maurice, CEO and co-founder of Busbud; Christian Bélair, President and Co-Founder of the business accelerator Credo Productions; Sergio Escobar, Managing Director of the Founder Institute's accelerator program for technology startups in Montréal, and Global Facilitator of Startup Weekend; and the Regroupement des jeunes chambres de commerce du Québec," continued Mountagha Sow.

"I would like to sincerely congratulate all members of the Youth Council and everyone who contributed to this opinion paper. Economic development is a priority for our administration, and we will examine the paper's recommendations very carefully. I am personally committed to becoming an ambassador for your message to help fulfil the ambitions of the next generation of Montreal entrepreneurs," stated Harout Chitilian, Vice-Chair of the City of Montréal's Executive Committee, and member in charge of administrative reform, youth, smart city initiatives and information technology.

Recommendations

Responsibility for providing support for youth entrepreneurship lies not only with the Municipal Administration, but also with community organizations. The CJM is making 22 recommendations to the Municipal Administration and its partners to ensure more entrepreneurial projects are successful. These include:

• making youth entrepreneurship a priority in Montréal's next economic development strategy;
• establishing a PRAM—Business Succession;
• ensuring concerted action is taken by metropolitan clusters to establish new business incubators and accelerators;
• actively supporting the recommendation put forward by the Regroupement des Jeunes Chambres de Commerce du Québec (RJCCQ) that a Business Buyers' Plan (Régime d'accès à l'entrepreneuriat—RAE) be created;
• opening services offered by LCEDs and LCDs (and future organizations) up to nonborough residents so all emerging entrepreneurs, not only the residents of an organization's catchment area, are able to benefit from specialized knowledge;
• creating a seller's tax credit based on the outstanding principal balance for business transfers to young entrepreneurs;
• having the City join the BizPal/PerLE system; and
• revising and simplifying business-related administrative procedures.

"Young Montreal is able to offer creativity, leadership, and ingenuity, and wants to do business in its city. Stakeholders in the community will find tools and strategies in this opinion paper to help young entrepreneurs continue to make our city's economy richer. I also invite them to join the Facebook discussion group we have created for the occasion (www.facebook.com/groups/jentreprends.ma.ville)‎. There, stakeholders and young entrepreneurs, will find a forum in which to share their ideas, preoccupations and needs so that we have all the input necessary to properly address the development of the next generation of business leaders," concluded Mountagha Sow."

The notice may be consult to www.bit.ly/avis_CjM.

About the Conseil Jeunesse de Montréal

The Conseil jeunesse de Montréal is mandated to advise the Mayor and the Executive Committee on issues relating to young people ages 12 to 30, and is responsible for ensuring that youth concerns are taken into consideration in decisions made by the Municipal Administration. For more information on CJM initiatives and activites, visit www.cjmtl.com.

SOURCE Conseil jeunesse de Montréal

Martin Crépeau, Coordinator, Conseil Jeunesse de Montréal, 514-872-4801, [email protected], Twitter @cjmtl, Facebook/cjmtl