International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research
Companies and societies have faced extreme external crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical risks, economic sanctions, and trade wars. These crises have significantly impacted global business activities, particularly small and growing entrepreneurial firms (SGEFs) (Sharma et al., 2024; Sinani & Zilja, 2024). SGEFs in the Global South have faced challenges in maintaining their identity (Kahveci et al., 2024) and fostering innovation, job creation, and regional development (Zhang et al., 2024). Understanding their resilience strategies is crucial.
Regional variations play a critical role in shaping SGEFs’ responses to crises. Innovation clusters, such as those in the U.S., have shown greater resilience and economic recovery (Delgado et al., 2015). The link between international entrepreneurship and regional development highlights how SGEFs drive innovation and employment (Audretsch et al., 2024; Leger et al., 2025). However, responses are influenced by factors like urbanization, industry concentration, and institutional support (Amezcua et al., 2020).
SGEFs in strong regional innovation systems exhibit higher innovation levels (Rypestøl & Aarstad, 2018). However, research on how external crises impact internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South remains limited (Demirdag, 2024; Zahra, 2021). The post-pandemic period presents an opportunity to examine how SGEFs in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America navigate recovery and value creation.
Although the literature on international entrepreneurship and regional development offers valuable insights (Huggins & Thompson, 2020; Qian & Jung, 2017), gaps remain, especially concerning resilience, capabilities, and microfoundations of SGEFs in the Global South. Entrepreneurial education is linked to SGEF growth (Galvão et al., 2020; Lassoued et al., 2024; Walter & Dohse, 2012), yet other factors, such as female entrepreneurship, require further exploration (Ojediran & Anderson, 2020). The role of digital technologies in regional development is also understudied (Hu et al., 2024; Kahveci et al., 2024).
Financial policies like venture capital and government programs are vital for entrepreneurial ecosystems (Clayton et al., 2024). Examining their effectiveness in Sub-Saharan Africa versus Southeast Asia can provide insights into scaling up SGEFs (Aggestam et al., 2017; van Doren et al., 2020). Additionally, the role of incubators and accelerators in fostering SGEFs in the Global South lacks sufficient scholarly attention. While incubators contribute to economic and social goals in Western countries (Surana et al., 2020), their effectiveness in developing economies remains unclear.
As global value chains evolve, understanding knowledge flows into localized ecosystems is essential (Akari et al., 2024; Cho et al., 2022). Research should explore entrepreneurs’ agency, decision-making, and the agglomeration effect within Global South regions. Comparative studies on institutional support and policy reforms can assess how countries mitigate external crises through financial structures and strategic frameworks (Ngo et al., 2022; Marques & Eberlein, 2021).
List of Topic Areas
We welcome both theoretical and empirical papers that provide robust insights into international entrepreneurship and Global South development. We encourage studies that adopt comparative perspectives, with a focus on regional differences rather than single-country implications. Below are some of the potential topics and research questions that the submitted papers should address:
Theoretical Frameworks and Strategies for Post-Pandemic Scaling
What theoretical frameworks best explain how internationalizing small and growing entrepreneurial firms (SGEFs) in the Global South contribute to regional development during external crises, especially in post-pandemic times?
What strategies can internationalizing SGEFs adopt to scale up in the aftermath of external crises, such as trade wars, economic sanctions, and geopolitical risks?
Crisis Management and Innovation
How have external crises, such as geopolitical risks and trade wars, reshaped the business models and market entry strategies of internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South?
How has the digital transformation of SGEFs been accelerated by external crises for regional development?
Which crisis management frameworks have been most effective for the survival and growth of internationalizing SGEFs?
Role of Networks and Collaborations
How does cross-border collaboration between internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South and developed economies enhance resilience and innovation, particularly in the post-crisis recovery phase?
How do global networks impact the scalability and innovation of internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South?
Key Drivers of Regional Development: Gender, Diversity, and Social Innovation
What role do female, immigrant, and ethnic entrepreneurs play in the regional development of internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South?
How do internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South leverage social innovation to address both the economic and social impacts of external crises?
Financial Support and Scaling Mechanisms
How do venture capital, crowdfunding, and other funding mechanisms contribute to the scaling-up of internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South?
What roles do incubators, accelerators, and other institutional support mechanisms play in the emergence and scaling of internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South during and after external crises?
Microfoundations, Top Management, and Organizational Support
From a microfoundations perspective, how do founding and top management teams influence the contribution of internationalizing SGEFs to regional development during external crises?
What organizational sponsorship mechanisms promote the survival and scaling-up of internationalizing SGEFs, and how do these mechanisms vary across Global South Regions?
Sustainability and Green Entrepreneurship
How do internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South utilize sustainability strategies to drive regional development in the post-pandemic period?
How does green entrepreneurship contribute to the internationalization and sustainability of SGEFs in the face of climate change regulations and carbon border taxes?
Institutional Support and Informal Networks
What role do informal institutions play in helping internationalizing SGEFs navigate external crises?
How do different forms of institutional support, including government policies and financial programs, affect the scaling-up of SGEFs in the Global South?
Knowledge Flow and Regional Ecosystems
How do internationalizing SGEFs acquire, transmit, and utilize knowledge for scaling-up operations, and how do these mechanisms evolve over time?
How do localized ecosystems support the establishment of new entrepreneurial activities and knowledge flows, particularly in crisis-affected regions?
Disaster Preparedness and Recovery
How do internationalizing SGEFs in the Global South utilize disaster preparedness and recovery strategies to maintain operations and scale up in regions prone to natural disasters?
Submission Information
Submissions of full manuscripts are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here:
Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:
Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.
Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.
Abstract Submissions
Abstracts should be emailed to the Guest Editors at: n.zahoor@qmul.ac.uk; f.donbesuur@leicester.ac.uk; peter.gabrielsson@uwasa.fi; martin.meyer@uwasa.fi
Key Dates
Closing date for abstract submissions: 31 October 2026
Opening date for manuscript submissions: 1 February 2027
Closing date for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2027
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