Micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) account for nearly 70% of employment and contribute 25% to Bolivia’s GDP, yet they continue to face challenges including informality, limited access to financing, and constrained innovation capacity. Addressing these barriers is essential for unlocking inclusive and resilient growth opportunities for the country’s MSME sector.
As part of the UNDP Seoul Policy Centre (USPC) SDG Partnership with Bolivia, a learning exchange webinar titled “Innovation in Action: Lessons from the Korean Ecosystem for the Development of Venture Studios in Bolivia” was co-hosted by USPC and UNDP Bolivia. The event brought together key stakeholders from both countries, including the Banco de Desarrollo Productivo (BDP), the Seoul Center for Creative Economy and Innovation (SCCEI), and the Korean impact investor Impact Square.
Launched in 2024 with support from the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the SDG Partnership aims to foster innovation and digital transformation for MSMEs in Bolivia by sharing relevant tools and practices from Korea. Since its inception, Bolivia has begun designing its first Venture Studio and Venture Capital Fund models to accelerate MSME development in priority sectors such as coffee and cacao.
Representatives from BDP and UNDP Bolivia outlined three pillars of the SDG Partnership programme: a Market Intelligence platform providing MSMEs with data and actionable insights for informed decision-making; a Venture Studio model offering structured incubation support from ideation to growth; and a Venture Capital mechanism facilitating financing for early-stage enterprises. Bolivia is also prioritizing six high-value-added sectors—coffee, cacao, wine, cheese, leather, and textiles—to strengthen competitiveness and establish the country as a center of excellence in these industries.
Speakers from SCCEI shared insights from Korea’s experience in building a dynamic start-up ecosystem through cross-sector collaboration. Korean Centers for Creative Economy and Innovation (CCEIs) act as hubs connecting start-ups with large corporations via open innovation programmes, which provide proof-of-concept funding and facilitate partnerships while managing risks and impact. Impact Square highlighted lessons for Bolivia, including blended finance approaches combining public and private capital, public-private partnerships, and impact measurement systems to track both financial and non-financial outcomes for sustainable ecosystem development.
The webinar concluded with discussions on the role of public incentives in catalyzing early-stage innovation, strategies for identifying priority sectors for venture growth in Bolivia, and potential adaptation of Korean collaboration models, such as open innovation programmes, to support Bolivia’s agricultural and high-value-added industries.
