The Role of Business Incubation Centers in Promoting Youth Entrepreneurship in Kenya: a Case of Youth Entrepreneurial Program at Nailab Center

Abstract

Business incubation centers are considered to be a foundation of economic growth and development. They contribute to this by pulling together the entrepreneurial motivation of a new enterprise with resources usually available to new enterprises. Whereas concluded studies highlight the role of incubation centers there exists a gap in the literature that focuses on how this incubation centers actually affect the youth in developing countries. The significant role business incubation plays in promoting youth entrepreneurship and start up enterprises has not been fully examined. The main objective of this study was to find out the role of business incubation centers in promoting youth entrepreneurship. This study discusses business incubation model, network theory and market failure theory as the anchor theories to study meet this objective. The study was directed by four objectives which were to: establish how business network support, financial support, management and business skill training promote youth entrepreneurship in Kenya. To achieve these objectives the study conducted a survey of all the incubates who have gone through Nailab since inception. Also key informants were purposively selected to help enrich the data gathered from the electronic questionnaires from the incubates. Data was collected from the electronically administered questionnaires, key informant interview guide and a face to face discussion with entrepreneurs. Key informants’ data were thematically analyzed using Microsoft Word Tables while data from traders were coded and entered into SPSS for analysis. The study found out that management training, financial support, networking opportunities and management training play a crucial role in promoting youth entrepreneurship. The study established that incubation centers provide a fundamental ecosystem that allows entrepreneurs to experiment, start up, grow and find the right strategic investors for their businesses to be able to compete at national and global levels. The study concludes that incubation is an essential bridge to solve the challenge of youth unemployment and set the country to achieve vision 2030.In view of this the study recommends better partnerships with stakeholders in the promotion of youth entrepreneurship, better and centralized government policies coupled with better incubation models to ensure sustainability