The Promotion of Entrepreneurship in Low Density Regions: The Case of the Agency for the Regional Development of Alentejo (ADRAL)

Abstract

In the 1980s, the renewal of academic interest in entrepreneurship as a factor of development highlighted the role of entrepreneurs in creating jobs and driving innovation. In the new century, fostering entrepreneurship became a public policy priority. In Portugal, the practice of creating business incubators has been gaining momentum and various institutions have developed business incubation activities. This study focuses on ADRAL – Agência de Desenvolvimento Regional do Alentejo, an agency for the regional development of Alentejo – and analyzes one of its instruments for the promotion of entrepreneurship – the creation of business incubators (also designated as enterprises' nests) located in Marvão and Montemor-o-Novo. These chapter focus on these two cases and assess the distinctive aspects of the partnerships between the development agency and the municipalities, and also the characteristics of the entrepreneurial projects and respective entrepreneurs, aiming at identifying the specificities of this approach and its success determinants.