The Joan Duncan Trust and Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) gave J$7.5 million in support of research undertaken by the University of Technology (UTech), Jamaica researchers for the production and publication of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2021 Jamaica Report. 

This report is expected to be a useful resource for entrepreneurs, policymakers and academics and is aimed at enhancing the level of entrepreneurial activity in Jamaica.

GEM hosts the world’s largest standing study of global entrepreneurial activity and highlights emerging trends in economies.

The Trust also sponsored a special feature in the report examining findings of the citizens’ perception of leadership and ethics in Jamaica.

The research measures the relationship between the decision to start a new business and the local, regional, and national environments that influence the decision directly (through access to resources) and indirectly (through its effects on social values and priorities); while also sharing recommendations for the way forward.

GEM is a networked consortium of national country teams primarily associated with top academic institutions. It carries out survey-based research on entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship ecosystems around the world and is the only global research source that collects data on entrepreneurship directly from individual entrepreneurs.

GEM tools and data are therefore unique and benefit numerous stakeholder groups including academia, entrepreneurs, financiers, and policymakers.