The Regional Assistant Secretary of the Presidency for Parliamentary Affairs announced in Ponta Delgada that the project "Entrepreneurial Education: The Path to Success," an initiative developed by the Government, has involved over 10,000 students from all islands in its five editions.

"These figures are important because they reveal the scope of the programme and evidence the importance we attach to this project and the resources allocated for its implementation," said Isabel Rodrigues.

The Regional Secretary spoke at the opening session of the Regional Competition Ideiaçores 2015, which was also attended by the Regional Secretary for Education and Culture, Avelino Meneses.

This competition aims to promote innovative business ideas, being the culmination of this year's edition of the programme "Entrepreneurial Education: The Path to Success." It took place at the University of the Azores on Friday.

This year, 2,500 students and teachers from all levels of education took part in the programme.

According to Isabel Rodrigues, the programme is intended to "provide children and young people with a series of skills, such as initiative capacity, risk-taking, and self-confidence in the implementation of projects that will develop their entrepreneurial capacity as adults so that they can contribute to regional development."

On his part, the Regional Secretary for Education and Culture defended that, unlike the past, the "knowledge" is the "key" to the wealth of nations.

"Human beings are the key to the wealth of nations. Their most important asset is the brain, from which innovative ideas spring. It is innovation that changes the world," said Avelino Meneses.

In his speech, the government official pointed out that "times are changing," adding that "gone the days when everything depended on the state and it was regarded as a saviour
"Today, it is increasingly difficult for this to happen. Employee jobs are increasingly uncertain," so "we need to instil in children, youngsters and adults the sense of initiative and entrepreneurship is not more than that."

For Avelino Meneses, it is necessary to "pass on to younger generations" this sense of initiative "so that they can have economic responsibility and that, when they complete their education, they can be initiative promoters and create their own jobs."
 
The programme "Entrepreneurial Education: The Path to Success!" is an initiative developed by the Regional Government, through the Regional Directorates of Youth and Education, in collaboration with the Society for the Business Development of the Azores (SDEA) and GesEntrepreneur; the latter is company that specialises in Education in Entrepreneurship and was responsible for the preparation of the educational package of the entire project.