Tourism Entrepreneurial Education and Intention Among Youths: A Case from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa

This paper explores the relationship between entrepreneurial education (ED) and youths’ entrepreneurial intention (EI) towards starting tourism businesses. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. The study used purposive sampling method of the non-probability sampling design to select 400 youths living in different regions of the King Cetshwayo District Municipality (KCDM), KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. The methodology employed partial least squares - structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS software version 4.0.8.5 to assess the relationships among the construct variables. The results show a significant positive relationship between entrepreneurial education and entrepreneurial intention. Recommendations are offered to the KCDM decision-makers (business support offices), National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), as well as Tourism KwaZulu-Natal to encourage youth entrepreneurship. South African higher education leaders and policymakers can benefit from these findings.