Below are the words announced by President Obama back in November 2014 to battle America’s broken immigration system. On this day, the President brought to action a program of “deferred action which would then allow approximately 45% of illegal immigrants to stay and work legally in the U.S.:

“We didn’t raise the Statue of Liberty with her back to the world; we did it with her light shining as a beacon to the world. And whether we were Irish or Italians or Germans crossing the Atlantic, or Japanese or Chinese crossing the Pacific; whether we crossed the Rio Grande or flew here from all over the world — generations of immigrants have made this country into what it is. It’s what makes us special.”

From the moment that these words were spoken, debates were sparking throughout the United States in which the population wondered if immigration reform was really the solution to increasing the American entrepreneurship rate.

Let’s look at the numbers and take a deeper look. In 2013, the number of businesses created by immigrants was 430 for every 100,000 people while the number of businesses established by Native Americans was 250 for the same amount of people. Moreover, immigrant entrepreneurs have proven to be pioneers in neighborhood revitalization, leading to the rebirth and growth of local areas. Although these numbers further prove the theory that immigration reform is, in fact, a solid solution, many people still associate immigrant entrepreneurs with low wage jobs, (for example, in the hair and the restaurant industry) while ignoring the fact that the presence of immigrants in high skilled and tech positions is in fact, substantial. Once data on immigration entrepreneurship is analyzed, it’s difficult to rebut and say the contrary.

Numbers speak, and the overall national decline of the entrepreneurship rate cannot be associated with immigrants. Several sources, even prove that economic vitality and job creation are powered by immigration. In fact, some American cities are even ahead of the curve and have started taking their own initiatives to welcome skilled and qualified immigrants because they see the importance of immigrants and the economic vitality that they can bring.

The United States was not the only one to see the importance and value that immigrants bring as a national empowering resource. For example, Chile offers one of the most innovative immigration programs in the world with its Start-Up Chile program that aims to attract entrepreneurs from all over the world. This program’s goal is to help the country with national development and economic boost.

The fact that the U.S. is starting to revalue immigration as an internal part of the economic national development is a great start, and the fact that we’re starting to changes is even better. There’s so much more that can be done or said when it comes to immigration reform and we’re excited to see what the future will bring for us and for YOU!