Exploring Social Entrepreneurship Policy and Venture Creation in Africa: A Review

Social entrepreneurship in Africa is increasingly shaped by policy environments that influence the capacity of social ventures to emerge, scale, and generate sustainable social impact within complex socio-economic and institutional contexts. This study examines how social entrepreneurship policies influence venture creation and growth across African countries by identifying enabling and constraining policy variables within the social entrepreneurial ecosystem. To provide ecosystem stakeholders with valuable insights to support sustainable development and address critical social challenges in Africa. The study employed a qualitative research design, employing a literature review and comparative case study analysis to evaluate policy instruments, including tax incentives, grants, regulatory frameworks, and institutional support mechanisms. It focuses on government measures that effectively encourage venture creation and social impact. The findings reveal that coherent regulatory structures, targeted financial incentives, and supportive governance frameworks significantly enhance social venture creation, while policy fragmentation, bureaucratic barriers, and weak institutional coordination impede ecosystem development. The study provides policymakers, practitioners, and investors with evidence-based insights to strengthen social entrepreneurship ecosystems through inclusive policy design, enabling sustainable development outcomes and scalable community-level social impact across Africa.