Economic Development and Entrepreneurship in Transition Economies

This book contributes to a better understanding of entrepreneurship in transition economies. Current literature
reflects the more traditional schools of thought on entrepreneurship, which are
influenced by the Western perspective, and fail to fully address the scenario
in transition economies. There is a broad consensus among academics, policy
makers, and practitioners that a fundamental cause of difficulties experienced
by most economies in transition has been the fact that reform has not been accompanied
by the creation of new, private businesses, and particularly SMEs. This is
especially evident in states created in Europe after the dissolution of the
Soviet Union where many barriers, which were inherited from the old system,
remain in place, thus inhibiting entrepreneurial progress in these countries
despite a favorable political and economic environment. The contributions featured
in this book focus on how much progress has been achieved so far with regard to
these aspects, as well as identify which current barriers and issues still need
to be resolved. Themes include innovation performance, financing, venture
capital, educational factors, and entrepreneurial learning.