Navigating institutional voids in African entrepreneurial ecosystems: insights from innovation hubs in Ghana and Kenya

Abstract

Purpose – Innovation hubs have become ubiquitous in the entrepreneurial ecosystems of African countries. However, it remains contested how far they promote start-up development at the micro level and shape the entrepreneurial ecosystem at the macro level, thus necessitating further examination. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws on institutional theory to explore how innovation hubs promote start-ups and to what extent they develop into key stakeholders in entrepreneurial ecosystems characterized by institutional voids. We followed a qualitative research design and conducted 28 semi-structured interviews with start-ups affiliated with Innohub (Accra) and iHub (Nairobi). Findings – We find that innovation hubs are key actors of entrepreneurial ecosystems in African countries, helping to overcome institutional voids by providing numerous services, such as access to capital, reliable and cost-effective infrastructure and meaningful events, including training, workshops and coaching, to start-ups. Additionally, they create an internal and external community of like-minded entrepreneurs who strongly benefit from peer-to-peer learning and practical collaborations. Originality/value – We argue that innovation hubs are institutional intermediaries that help overcome institutional voids in African entrepreneurial ecosystems. At the same time, we challenge the deficit-focused view of institutional voids theory by showing that hubs create hybrid institutional forms rooted in local contexts, serving as sites of institutional emergence. We also link micro-level hub practices to macro-level ecosystem dynamics, offering grounded insights into how innovation hubs shape entrepreneurial ecosystems in African countries.