A sustainable view on entrepreneurial ecosystems: The study of the Lagos context

Abstract

For years researchers have written about entrpreneurial ecosystems (EE), but only recently the topic of sustainability gained importance. Research has begun to take its first steps, but the relationship between EE and sustainability did not go really into deep. My research aims to give support in the definition and identification of such ecosystems by trying to define their main features and the parameters for measuring their level of sustainability. It is useful to clarify from the outset how the term 'sustainable' will be understood, lest it be misinterpreted. Sustainable is not understood as a simple business practice aimed at improving the image of the actors involved in the ecosystem, but refers to concrete actions that bring economic, environmental and social benefit to local development. For this reason, the relationship EE and the Sustsianble Development Goals (SDGs) is analysed within this paper. My study will focus on Lagos, an emerging and dynamic reality that is part of a developing country like Nigeria. It is therefore intended to put a topical issue such as sustainability side by side with an important topic such as entrepreneurial ecosystems, but at the same time to verify concretely the impact they have on lesser-known realities in the world. The paper is strutcured as follows. In the first part, with the help of literature, an attempt is made to define what a sustainable EE (SEE) is. The second aims to indicate a possible way to better identify a SEE. In the third and final part, the study of Lagos is deepened by trying to apply the concepts set out in the previous sections.