Developing and increasing entrepreneurship education and enhancing entrepreneurial competencies (European Commission, 2018) is vital in rural communities which aim for sustainable growth and jobs (United Nations, 2025). In the SmartVille project (LAB, 2025; SmartVille Living Labs 2025) partners work together to co-create informal and formal entrepreneurship courses for Zambian and Namibian partner universities and for rural communities. SmartVille project members from Namibia and Finland visited the project Living lab communities at the end of 2024 and conducted focus group discussions (see Eewijk & Angehrn, 2017; Nyumba et al. 2018) in Nauuasport and Mix Settlement communities in Namibia. Similar focus group discussions were organized earlier in Zambia in August 2024 (Saarijärvi & Mufeti 2024).
Findings from the Mix Settlement community
Mix Settlement community members had previous experiences of entrepreneurship. They currently operate businesses such as barbershops, hair salons and general small-scale businesses that covers selling of small items including fat cakes and kapana (fried or roasted meat). Focus group participants highlighted that they have received training from the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (BIPA) in the community. However, they have not registered their own businesses in most cases due to the costs involved in running these businesses. Thus, informal entrepreneurship is much common in the community.
The current types of businesses in the community include: (1) Community initiatives -e.g. the kindergarten at Mix is a community initiative, (2) individual businesses – people selling small merchandise to other community members; (3) non-governmental organizations – some private schools and other initiatives. They also expressed a need for training in general small-scale entrepreneurship skills such as bookkeeping, marketing, growth and expansion of businesses, as well as general information sharing on how to solve problems. Based on these discussions, a course on Fundamentals of Small Business Management is developed. The course is led and facilitated by a teacher from the Namibia University of Science and Technology, NUST.
Findings from Nauuasport community
Similar focus group discussions were also held in Nauuasport where the second Living lab will be established in Namibia. Community members had previous experience of entrepreneurship in areas such as chicken production and crop farming. They would like to develop other entrepreneurial initiatives to sell basics such as cool drinks, ice, internet café to provide internet services, and veterinary services to provide medicines for common animal problems. Community members highlighted the need to know about best practices on farming, so they don’t only rely on traditional knowledge.
![[Alt text: a group of people sitting on benches and standing on savanni, listening to a presentation.]](https://blogit.lab.fi/labfocus/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2025/02/48_2025_Exploring-entrepreneurial-needs-in-Namibia-1024x595.jpg)
Community members have developed knowledge on growing crops in areas where there is water scarcity. Nauuasport is an arid area, and there is a limitation on the amount of water that one can use. Although several training opportunities were availed to the community, discussions revealed that not all members of the communities equally benefitted from these opportunities. Usually, it is only one or two people required to participate in the training. Often the farm owner and their close associates benefit from these opportunities, while the workers continue being marginalized. Thus, it there is a need for equity in availing training opportunities to everyone (including workers).
Community members do not have registered businesses, and thus, they would like to get general information on starting and maintaining businesses. So, it is important to include the entire ecosystem of processes required to start and run a business. It is also important that the training takes into consideration the training of trainers, so that they can train others.
Based on the community needs, the SmartVille project is developing an Agropreneurship course which provides participants with the tools needed to create sustainable and profitable agribusinesses, thereby supporting personal growth and community development. The course is facilitated by University of Namibia and a teacher to lead the implementation of the course has already been identified.
Authors
Terhi Saarijärvi, D.Sc. (Econ. & Bus. Adm) is co-leading entrepreneurial learning contents work package with Kauna Mufeti in the SmartVille project. She works as a RDI expert and a lecturer also in the VALIOT project at LAB University of Applied Sciences, Lappeenranta, Finland.
Kauna Mufeti, D.Sc. (Information Systems) is leading the entrepreneurial learning contents work package with Terhi Saarijärvi in the SmartVille project. She works as an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Agriculture, Engineering and Natural Sciences in University of Namibia, Windhoek, Namibia.
References
Eeuwijk, P. W. & Angehrn, Z. 2017. “How to … Conduct a Focus Group Discussion (FGD)”. Methodological Manual, 2017.
European Commission. Council Recommendation of 22 May 2018 on key competences for lifelong learning. Official Journal of the European Union 1–13. Cited 27 Jan 2025. Available at Key competences for lifelong learning – Publications Office of the EU
LAB. 2024. Developing Sustainable and Entrepreneurial Villages Through Educational Living Labs in Namibia and Zambia. Project websites. LAB University of Applied Sciences. Cited 26 Jan 2025. Available at https://lab.fi/en/project/developing-sustainable-and-entrepreneurial-villages-through-educational-living-labs-namibia
Nyumba, T.O., Wilson, K. Derrick, C.J. & Mukherjee, N. 2018. The use of Focus Group Discussion methodology: Methods in Ecolocy and Evolution. Methods Ecol Evol. vol. 9, 20–32.
Saarijärvi, T. & Mufeti, K. 2024. SmartVille project team creates entrepreneurial learning contents for Living labs. LAB Focus. Cited 21 Jan 2025. Available at https://blogit.lab.fi/labfocus/en/smartville-project-team-creates-entrepreneurial-learning-contents-for-living-labs/
SmartVille Living Labs. 2024. Project website. Cited 26 Jan 2025. Available at https://www.smartvillelivinglabs.com
Sustainable Development. United Nations. 2025. Cited 26 Jan 2025. Available at https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal8
