Systematic Review of Business Incubators’ Role in Promoting Growth and Sustainability of Women Entrepreneurs

This systematic review investigated how business incubators contribute to the growth, performance, and sustainability of women entrepreneurs. A thorough search of studies published between 2000 and 2025 in Google Scholar and Scopus identified 27 studies eligible for analysis. The study used the PRISMA 2020 approach, which comprised identification, Screening, eligibility, and inclusion of the articles. The quality check of the articles was guided by the Mixed-Methods Approach and the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). This allowed articles to be checked against risk of bias, inconsistency, indirectness, imprecision and publication bias. Thematic analysis was used to synthesize and interpret data. The analysis considered the characteristics and patterns of the studies. The themes of the study were categorized into the roles and challenges of business incubators and gender descriptions in incubator studies. The study revealed that most studies were conducted in developed countries and Asia, while a few were conducted in developing countries. particularly, Africa. Most of the studies also applied qualitative analysis. The thematic analysis revealed that the role of business incubators included facilitating training, networking, and providing business facilities. However, the study revealed that a lack of awareness, working facilities, qualified trainers, and financial resources largely contributed to the low growth and sustainability of business incubators. The study demonstrated that business incubators have not adequately reduced the gender gap. The study recommends that policymakers and development partners collaborate to overcome the challenges facing women's business incubators.