Entrepreneurship among British Africans: moving forward by looking backward

Sonny Nwankwo

Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, 2013, vol. 7, issue 2, 136-154

Abstract: Purpose - This paper aims to explore how the complex interrelationship between historical factors and socio‐economic contexts contributed in shaping the contemporary representation of African entrepreneurship in Britain. Using this prism, it highlights some of the critical developmental challenges and future prospects. Design/methodology/approach - In order to track the connection between historical/immigration experiences and conditions of entrepreneurial development among Africans in Britain, the paper follows in the tradition of socio‐historical method. It leans on syntheses drawn from a broader underpinning literature. Findings - The way in which the historiography of African entrepreneurship is generally presented reveals hybrid and ambivalent positions; guiding as well as constraining the representation of entrepreneurial choices of contemporaneous British Africans. Historical antecedents have strong explanatory powers in the construction or reconstruction of entrepreneurial identities of British Africans. Practical implications - Against the backcloth of the problems generally encountered in attempts to stimulate and support entrepreneurship in black and African communities in Britain, policy designers very often ignore the fact the solutions will have to be sought from within the paradigms that created the problems. The positioning of this paper is intended to begin to plug this gap. Originality/value - The concept of discourse is critical to understanding entrepreneurial processes of British Africans and bears careful explanation to their entrepreneurial transitions. This angle of inquiry is novel, with possibilities for opening new sites of knowledge.

Keywords: Entrepreneurs; African entrepreneurship; British Africans; Entrepreneurial identity; Historiography; United Kingdom (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:jecpps:v:7:y:2013:i:2:p:136-154

DOI: 10.1108/17506201311325797

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