Fostering Entrepreneurship: Insights from North Africa and the GCC

This study examines entrepreneurial ecosystems in North Africa and the GCC, focusing on how institutional frameworks, financial access and cultural dynamics influence both entrepreneurial outcomes and the development of individual entrepreneurial mindsets. Addressing a gap in comparative regional analyses, the research highlights variations in ecosystem maturity, policy effectiveness and behavioural dimensions of entrepreneurship across emerging economies. A qualitative comparative design, grounded in Institutional Theory, the resource-based view and the Entrepreneurial Orientation Model, was used to analyse secondary data from academic literature, government reports and regional development publications. Entrepreneurial mindset was operationalised through observable behaviours, including innovation, proactivity, risk-taking and opportunity recognition, with ecosystem factors coded for their influence on these dimensions. Findings indicate that GCC countries benefit from robust policies, stable institutional frameworks and well-developed financial and support mechanisms, which enhance entrepreneurs’ capacity to act proactively, innovate and scale ventures. In contrast, North African countries face regulatory inefficiencies, political instability and limited financial access, with Morocco and Tunisia demonstrating partial progress through initiatives such as Plan Maroc Digital 2020 and the Startup Act. The results underscore the critical link between ecosystem conditions and individual entrepreneurial behaviours, highlighting the need for targeted reforms in institutions, finance and cultural support to foster proactive, opportunity-oriented mindsets. Practical implications are offered for policymakers, entrepreneurs and investors seeking to promote innovation-driven growth. Limitations include reliance on secondary data and partial coverage of regional diversity, suggesting that future research should adopt in-depth case studies, sector-specific analyses and longitudinal approaches to monitor ecosystem evolution and evaluate how policy interventions shape entrepreneurial mindset development over time.