Entrepreneur interdependence: unpacking the ethnic/immigrant entrepreneur network context

Amid mounting concerns in Europe about economic growth and competitiveness in global markets, immigrant/ethnic entrepreneurs successfully incorporate and manage new businesses that satisfy ethnic needs, help buttress other businesses, stimulate competition, and contribute to national coffers. This ethnic economic wealth creation could be fostered by developing and implementing appropriate immigrant/ethnic entrepreneur-centred policies and initiatives which ought to include, among others, greater use by the ethnic entrepreneurs of co-ethnic and especially multiethnic and host-country business networks. This paper reviews entrepreneur interdependence from the networking perspective since, traditionally, immigrant/ethnic entrepreneurs have been self- and mutually-reliant. It recommends that appropriate policies and initiatives be developed and implemented to promote this mutual reliance and thereby ensure ethnic/immigrant enterprises are (a) increased in number, (b) aided to survive and thrive, (c) accelerated in their growth, and (d) facilitated to become more competitive nationally and internationally. Six areas of action are proposed