The YDK as an Entrepreneur

The YDK as an Entrepreneur

11 August 2026

There is an appealing narrative circulating on the internet. The YDK should become more entrepreneurial, and entrepreneurship should receive more attention in education. Entrepreneurship is an economic instrument, but also an instrument of emancipation. It is a nice narrative, but the CBS statistics tell a different story: only about half of those who are employed are wage earners.

In recent years, many people have been forced by necessity to try their hand at working for themselves. Moreover, entrepreneurship has long been part of the education system. The Business Administration program at the university, for example, offers an Entrepreneurship specialization. I also have many former students who have since become successful entrepreneurs.

For years, there have also been organizations such as ADECK, Negoshi Pikiña, and even the Chamber of Commerce that focus particularly on small entrepreneurs.

So the problem lies elsewhere. Once again, the government has created a paper tiger, accompanied by a website for small entrepreneurs. The policy itself is an update of an earlier version of essentially the same policy, which was never implemented.

The problem is not a lack of entrepreneurial spirit, but an anti-entrepreneurial climate, with the government and financial institutions leading the way. The only time entrepreneurs receive plenty of attention is when their tax debts have accumulated due to negligence on the part of the Tax Administration, and the Tax Administration eventually comes to collect the money.

So the problem is certainly not that we are failing to train people to become entrepreneurs. The problem is a climate that fails to give the entrepreneur the space to actually do business.

Miguel Goede