Entrepreneurship development in South Africa’s higher education remains an urgent concern for both government and practitioners, including employers.

In addition to fostering the entrepreneurial capacity of students, and academics, it is imperative that students become economically active during and after their studies and pursue self-employment rather than paid employment.

A government programme named Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education (EDHE) was set up to close those gaps. However, what remains unclear is what is meant by entrepreneurship development.

EDHE says it is advancing entrepreneurial capacity within the higher education setting (https://edhe.co.za/about/). If one understands EDHE’s interpretation of entrepreneurship development to mean advocating for entrepreneurial training within universities and colleges, it then calls for a number of questions. 

These questions include: 

1. At what level should entrepreneurship education start? 
2. To what extent has the current curriculum facilitated entrepreneurial uptake? 
3. What opportunities exist to make entrepreneurship education an attractive field of study? 
4. To what extent has entrepreneurship been embedded in the curricula of non-business related programs in South African institutions of Higher Learning?

Drawing from EDHE’s concept of entrepreneurship development in higher education, it is fair to assume that entrepreneurship development relies on several stakeholders, including students, academics, and the private sector.

The next EDHE Lekgotla will be hosted by UWC from 4-8 September 2023. For more information, please go to https://edhe.co.za/