Revisiting Entrepreneurship Development Policy Framework for Africa

Most development economists agree that entrepreneurship provides a greater promise for lowering the levels of youth unemployment in Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). It can also strengthen the capacity of young people to care for themselves and their families (Kuada, 2015a). For this reason, entrepreneurial attitude development among the youth has featured prominently on the policy agenda of many African countries. Since past research has used innovation and creativity as useful constructs by which entrepreneurs can be identified, these two defining characteristics have guided most entrepreneurship development policies. Building on them, the entrepreneurship literature has identified two complementary sets of policy initiatives. The first group of policies encourage African higher educational institutions (AHEIs) to design entrepreneurship education (EE) programmes that serve to bridge entrepreneurial skill gaps among the youth (Sorensen & Kuada, 2022). The second, encourages general entrepreneurial learning within informal structures and relational networks. The results of these initiatives have been limited and policymakers have become keenly aware that creating an entrepreneurial culture in a country is a complex undertaking and the predictive validity of any single approach is nearly impossible to establish (Rae, 2017). For example, past empirical research has shown that factors other than “school attainment” contribute to an individual’s preparedness to start a business, and AHEIs may lack the capabilities to provide all the required preparations (Sorensen & Kuada, 2022). Similarly, African entrepreneurs’ learning process is often messy, as they acquire skills and competencies from widely diverse sources. Consequently, no single policy can adequately address their learning needs. For these reasons, the search for the most suitable modalities for facilitating youth-based entrepreneurship in Africa remains a vigorously debated topic within SSA policy and academic circles.