Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township
Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy
ISSN: 1750-6204
Article publication date: 5 August 2014
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to investigate the current self-employment rate as well as entrepreneurial intentions of the township’s population on the basis of an empirical case study of a single township. It is often assumed that the black population of South Africa (mostly living in townships) has a low participation rate in entrepreneurial activities and a low level of entrepreneurial ambitions. Besides the level of entrepreneurship, personal and socio-economic factors affecting participation in entrepreneurship are explored.
Design/methodology/approach
The article uses a face-to-face survey of about 350 adult residents of the township under investigation.
Findings
Contrary to the common assumption, entrepreneurial activity, which also includes all kinds of informal business ventures, cannot be qualified as low in the township under investigation. The same holds true for entrepreneurial ambitions, that is, people’s intentions to start their own business in the near future. The factors influencing the probability of self-employment are similar to what we know from many other studies in the field of entrepreneurship. Socio-demographic attributes (gender, age), human capital factors (schooling, health) and social network resources (membership of organizations, self-employed friends) are significant predictors of entrepreneurial activity. It proves to be difficult, however, to explain who, in fact, articulates entrepreneurial ambitions.
Practical implications
The findings show that the basic prerequisites for expanding black entrepreneurship in South Africa are in place. Politically, it seems appropriate to initiate more public support programs for black entrepreneurship, as such programs can help to translate entrepreneurial ambitions into action. However, to stay realistic, the contribution of entrepreneurship to overcome the structural problems of deprivation and poverty of the black population of South Africa should not be overestimated.
Originality/value
The article is based on a careful survey in a township using a random sample. Given the rare access to a disadvantaged township community, the result that there is no evidence of “lack of entrepreneurial impetus” deserves scientific and political attention.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This article has been written as part of the research project “Entrepreneurship in Disadvantaged Black Communities – A Case Study of the Walmer Township, Port Elizabeth, South Africa” which was conducted from 2008 to 2011. The project was directed by Peter Preisendörfer (Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz) and Frans J. Bezuidenhout (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth), and it was funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG Project No. PR 237/5-1) and the South African National Research Foundation (NRF Project No. 65,957).
Citation
Preisendoerfer, P., Bitz, A. and J. Bezuidenhout, F. (2014), "Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township", Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Vol. 8 No. 3, pp. 162-179. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEC-02-2012-0020
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited