The development of Business Seedbed Theories : A permanent solution to poverty and inequality in Africa

Because of their job creation potential, Small Businesses (SBs) are key to the reduction of poverty and inequality across the world. In an African dispensation, SBs are regarded as the engine for economic growth. In essence, these business entities account for more than 75% of African enterprises. Despite the significant number of African SBs, the continent is still plagued with high levels of poverty and inequality, mainly because of weak business sustainability of African SBs. Previous studies identified many reasons for this weak sustainability, and these include stiff competition, lack of capital, unstable electricity supply, high electricity costs, high crime rate, and high inflation rates. To improve the African SBs’ sustainability, the main objectives of this study were to; 1) develop new theories that will foster business sustainability in Africa and 2) discuss the use of the developed theories in Private Cities (PCs). To attain these objectives, a non-empirical, exploratory research was conducted in the form of an online desktop review. From the study, three Business Seedbed Theories (BSTs) were developed using the concepts of interdependence, cooperation, business ecosystem, Group Companies, and PCs. Furthermore, it was found that PCs play a crucial role in enhancing the sustainability of SBs, due to 1) lack of competition at the early business development stages and 2) enhanced economic environment