Exploring the role of social entrepreneurship in the economic development of the North West province, South Africa

Abstract

Social entrepreneurship has become a popular topic of interest across the world. Social enterprises are different from traditional enterprises because they can create products and services to benefit society and create opportunities for the less fortunate. However, social entrepreneurship in South Africa is still in its infancy by scope, support, and size. Research on social entrepreneurship is relatively sparse in a country facing chronic unemployment, short of skills and education, and a mixed economy. The primary objective of this study is to explore and describe social entrepreneurship in the North West province of South Africa. The study has five secondary objectives to achieve the primary objective. The literature review in Chapter 2 assisted the researcher in collecting information on the study of social entrepreneurship. The information gathered from the literature review was used to structure the interview questions of the empirical study. The study pursued a qualitative research method with a descriptive research strategy. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather information from eight social entrepreneurs in the North West province; Klerksdorp, Mafikeng, Lichtenburg, and Rustenburg. Thematic data analysis in ethnography was used to assist the researcher in identifying trends and themes in the cultural setting. Twelve themes were identified: three themes and nine sub-themes. At the end of the study, the researcher also made recommendations for future contributions to literature from an African perspective and to social entrepreneurship practice that can help to build-up on this study.