A new entrepreneurship law, supported by Atlas Network partner Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo (CED), received approval this year from the Chamber of Deputies in Uruguay. The law reduces high costs and the long bureaucratic process involved in starting a business, both of which have prevented entrepreneurs from entering the market.
Since the law’s approval, CED has reached out through the media to build support for free-market ideas.
“Uruguay is a very conservative country, in which legal changes often cost a lot for cultural and institutional inertia,” commented Hernán Bonilla, Executive Director of CED. “Undoubtedly, the dissemination of the initiative and its discussion in public opinion through events and media is a very important part of the process.”
As a result of the law, new businesses can look forward to a smoother opening process, and Bonilla hopes that once the bill gains approval from the Senator’s Chamber, news of entrepreneurial success will encourage the launch of new ventures.
“This initiative is part of the vision that the Center for Development Studies has for Uruguay, which is to achieve a freer, fairer and more prosperous country,” concluded Bonilla. “Our proposals aim to ensure that Uruguay becomes a developed country in a not-too-distant future, and we believe that concrete proposals are key in the battle of ideas.”
CED’s advocacy of the law has been covered by a number of major Uruguayan media outlets, including Teledoce and Crónicas.
Updated on December 10, 2019: The entrepreneurship law passed a Senate vote in October and is now law in Uruguay. Upon its passage, Bonilla stated “I want to especially thank Atlas Network’s support for this initiative to thrive.”