The number of new start-ups launched last year in Belgium fell for the first time in over a decade, according to a report by the GraydonCreditsafe service company.
In all, 115,645 businesses were created, almost 3.5% fewer than in 2021.
UCM and Unizo, both organisations which represent the country's self-employed, have attributed this decrease to the ongoing economic effects of the war in Ukraine.
While the number of start-ups rose in 2021 due to a post-pandemic bump, the same could not be said for 2022 with Belgian start-ups having to contend with soaring energy costs, record-high inflation rates and wage indexations.
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All three of Belgium's regions also experienced a drop in companies being created, with 3.58% fewer in Flanders, 2.57% in Wallonia and 0.37% in Brussels. Additionally, Belgian startups currently have a 10-year survival rate of 49.57%.
These figures have led UCM and Unizo to call for lower taxes on the country's self-employed and SMEs. UCM highlighted the issues facing the retail sector, which include cross-border shopping and completion from e-commerce.
