African innovation and entrepreneurship research for sustainable development: a young scholars’ perspective

Abstract

This article presents a collection of essays on African Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research for Sustainable Development, authored by young scholars from the 2024 PhD Winter School at Bern University of Applied Sciences. To help harness the transformative power of innovation and entrepreneurship for sustainable development, the five essays explore necessary change on multiple levels – including the institutional, ecosystem, industry, and individual levels – as well as key concepts such as social entrepreneurship and affordable innovation. Collectively, they emphasize the importance of contextualized research in entrepreneurship and innovation. This multi-voice article serves both as a call to action and a collaborative platform for PhD students from Africa and Europe to jointly generate new insights into how entrepreneurship and innovation can contribute to sustainable development in Africa. The collection is framed by an introduction and conclusion written by the editors of the multi-voice article.