Entrepreneurial ecosystem for potential young entrepreneurs in Bangladesh: challenges and strategies from a cultural perspective

Abstract

The entrepreneurial ecosystem and its elements are essential for the growth of entrepreneurship. A congenial ecosystem fosters a positive perception among young potential entrepreneurs of a country. A current flaw in the existing literature is the lack of research on customised entrepreneurial ecosystems in developing/emerging economies where culture creates challenges that deter the youth to choose entrepreneurial careers. It is well recognised that Bangladesh is one such South Asian emerging economy with many sociocultural and institutional challenges. Consequently, Bangladesh is trying to make considerable developments in youth entrepreneurship to solve the youth unemployment problem. Drawing insights from Western entrepreneurship research, it is vital to understand the challenges affecting youth’s entrepreneurial behaviour, and the much-needed strategies to solve these challenges to determine the elements of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. This research aims to identify the culturally influenced challenges and strategies to design a customised entrepreneurial ecosystem for Bangladesh. A qualitative methodology with epistemological belief has been followed in this research. To reach the aim, 30 young successful entrepreneurs from Dhaka city have been sourced via purposive sampling techniques. Constructive paradigms with semi-structured in-depth interviews have been focused on collecting the lived experiences of the entrepreneurs. After collecting data for analysis, Leximancer software version 4.5 is used to derive the core themes and concepts along with the hermeneutic approach to interpret data. This study provides implications for the youth, entrepreneurs, families, society, government, educators, financial institutions, and policymakers in Bangladesh to develop a support system and create an entrepreneurial environment for young potential entrepreneurs. The proposed customised entrepreneurial ecosystem for Bangladesh is a pioneer scholarly contribution to both theory and practice of entrepreneurship, particularly in the context of South Asia, more specifically, in Bangladesh.

Date of Thesis submission	2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Western Sydney University
Supervisor	Thomas Klikauer (Supervisor), Catherine Link (Supervisor) & Ataus Samad (Supervisor)