OECD: Youth self-employment is high in Greece, but it’s often driven by necessity

Youth self-employment in Greece is above the European average, but for many young people, entrepreneurship is more a response to a lack of good job opportunities than a choice to pursue a business opportunity, according to an OECD report.

In 2025, 11% of employed young people aged 20 to 29 in Greece were self-employed, compared with 6% in the EU. However, this higher rate is not matched by similarly strong levels of growth and innovation.

Around one in three young people who had started or begun running a new business said they turned to entrepreneurship because they could not find satisfactory employment. At the same time, only around a third of young entrepreneurs in Greece introduced a new product or service between 2019 and 2023, compared with 49% in the EU and 47% across the OECD.

Young entrepreneurs in Greece reported the highest fear of failure among the 35 OECD countries examined, at 53%.

Growth expectations are also lower. Only 8% of young entrepreneurs expected their business to create at least 19 jobs over the next five years, compared with 11% in the EU and 16% across the OECD.

The OECD links these figures to difficult market conditions, limited access to financing and gaps in entrepreneurial skills, noting that high levels of self-employment do not automatically translate into dynamic and innovative entrepreneurship.

Sources: OECD, Kathimerini