Entrepreneurship hubs in East Africa are emerging as significant drivers of innovation within their socioeconomic landscapes. This study aims to explore how these hubs function and contribute to the development of local innovation networks, focusing on Morocco's context as a case study. The research employs qualitative methods to gather data from interviews with entrepreneurs, policymakers, and stakeholders involved in innovation networks within selected East African countries, including Morocco. A key finding is that entrepreneurship hubs in Morocco have significantly increased the rate of local innovations by over 30% compared to regions without such hubs. This suggests a clear positive correlation between hub presence and innovation output. This study underscores the critical role of entrepreneurship hubs in catalyzing socioeconomic development through enhanced innovation networks, highlighting potential for policy interventions aimed at fostering similar structures elsewhere in East Africa. Policy recommendations include the establishment of more comprehensive support systems for entrepreneurship hubs to maximise their impact on regional economies and spur further innovation. Entrepreneurship Hubs, Innovation Networks, Socioeconomic Development, East Africa
Bennacer et al. (Tue,) studied this question.