Entrepreneurship interventions and the intentions of South African youths to start own business

Abstract

BACKGROUND : Increasingly, there is a concerted effort to provide entrepreneurship interventions to young people in a bid to activate their appetite for entrepreneurial activity. The current research seeks to offer meaningful insight into the effectiveness of these interventions and their potential to encourage entrepreneurship among disadvantaged youths in South Africa. AIM : The study aims to understand the connection between the participation of young people from poor communities in South Africa in entrepreneurship interventions and their entrepreneurial intentions to start a business. SETTING : The data used for the study were collected from participants aged between 18 years and 34 years who had previously participated in entrepreneurship programmes between 2008 and 2019 offered by a variety of institutions. METHODS : Using data drawn from a sample of 165 young people based on a survey instrument consisting of 16 questions, a regression analysis was employed to examine the significance of the relationship between the variables. RESULTS : The results revealed that entrepreneurship interventions positively influenced entrepreneurial intentions. The study found that certain programmes had a significantly greater impact on promoting entrepreneurial intentions than those with a lesser focus on practical business skills. This outcome indicates the need for more real-world business training in future interventions. CONCLUSION : The findings suggest that providing entrepreneurship interventions and related resources can be an effective strategy for encouraging entrepreneurial intentions among disadvantaged youths. CONTRIBUTION : This study contributes to knowledge related to entrepreneurial intentions with emphasis on the significance of entrepreneurship interventions in the advancement of entrepreneurial activity.