Decolonizing Eurocentric models of entrepreneurship in South Africa

Abstract

Indigenous entrepreneurship (IE) is gaining prominence globally. Yet, it remains insufficiently theorised in African contexts, where universal models of entrepreneurship are still applied in ways that do not fully reflect the lived realities and aspirations of Indigenous peoples. In response, this paper examines how Indigenous communities in South Africa define and practise entrepreneurship, and how they conceptualise entrepreneurial “success.” The study adopts a decolonial framework informed by the geopolitics of knowledge and draws on qualitative data from ten interviews and two focus group discussions with Indigenous entrepreneurs in KwaZulu-Natal. Through this lens, the analysis explores how participants’ understandings of IE align with, challenge, or extend dominant scholarly and policy narratives. The findings show that participants define IE through relational, cultural, and community-centred principles rather than individual profit maximisation. Success is defined as sustaining community livelihoods, strengthening social bonds, and protecting ecological and cultural resources. These priorities signal an alternative entrepreneurial epistemology that resists narrow economic indicators and affirms the legitimacy of Indigenous economic systems on their own terms. The paper argues that grounding entrepreneurship in Indigenous worldviews not only destabilises the presumed universality of mainstream entrepreneurship theories but also offers concrete directions for rethinking how success is measured and supported in policy and education. In doing so, it advances more inclusive, decolonial approaches that centre community autonomy and open up possibilities for reimagining development from the ground up.