Exploring African entrepreneurship through African and Western lenses

Which theory or theories—Western or African—better explain the underlying mechanisms of entrepreneurship observed in the African context? Scholars have identified social capital theory and institution theory to explain this phenomenon. Others, such as causation, discovery, transaction cost, and agency theory, have also been employed, perhaps to a lesser extent. Some have shown great promise as explanators in uncertain contexts and leveraging contingencies. Further, researchers have begun to explore the indigenization of management and entrepreneurship, while others have extended the conversation involving China, Russia, and Africa. While these studies have been suggestive of the rich promise of indigenous theories, few attempts have been made to critically evaluate them compared to existing Western explanations. Heeding the call for knowledge created by, from, and for Africa and the indigenous explanation rooted in Africa, we examine the African Africapitalism ideas proposed by some scholars.