Regional entrepreneurial activity : the case of the Jordanian economy
Date
2010
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Publisher
Faculty of Business, University of Jordan
Abstract
Economic growth in Jordan must remain a worrying factor to policy-makers because of the problems posed by the already high and consistent unemployment rates. The fact that the national economy's recent economic (strong) performance failed to generate the employment opportunities sought by the rapidly expanding labour force, has brought about some real pressures for economic reforms including the promotion of the role of the private sector. Indeed, this commitment to the principle of economic liberalization by successive Jordanian governments has made the Jordanian private sector, at once, a major player, an instrumental actor, and a direct prime beneficiary of any expected economic benefits.
For centuries, economists (and others) have tried to understand why some countries reflect strong economic growth, while others stagnate at low levels of output. This effort has led to the publication of many of theoretical papers. As expected, the theoretical effort on the determinants of economic growth has resulted in a wide range of empirical papers which examine the factors underlying economic growth. Based on various conceptual and methodological viewpoints, these studies have considered a myriad of explanatory variables including, for example, investment, innovation and Research and Development (R&D) activities, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), institutions, openness to trade, financial development, and entrepreneurship.
The primary objective of this research is to empirically examine the issue of regional entrepreneurship in Jordan. In more specific terms, this research examines two main issues: The first issue involves some comparisons between the different Jordanian regions in terms of the main variables which are covered by the 2009 Survey of Jordanian adults carried out by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM). The second issue which concerns this paper is the identification of the determinants of regional entrepreneurship.
Based on the empirical analyses, it is concluded that entrepreneurship in Jordan is lower than might be expected. In addition, while cultural attitudes are favourable, males are much more likely than females to become involved in entrepreneurial activity. Finally, based on the econometric analysis, the results indicate that while the density of entrepreneurship at the regional level reflects some significant differences, gender, fear of failure, required level of skills, and income are the most significant factors which impact entrepreneurial activity.
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Keywords
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, JORDAN, ECONOMIC GROWTH, RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, FOREIGN INVESTMENT