Anchoring Resilience: A Multi-Level Framework for Startup Sustainability in Emerging Economies

Abstract

Emerging economies present a paradoxical landscape for entrepreneurship. While offering vast, untapped markets and a crucible for frugal innovation, these contexts are characterized by institutional voids, resource scarcity, and profound uncertainty, leading to alarmingly high startup failure rates. This article argues that the sustainability of startups in these contexts is not a function of individual factors in isolation but emerges from a dynamic interplay of multi-level forces. Synthesizing recent empirical research and theoretical developments, we propose an integrated framework that operates across four distinct but interconnected levels: the Founder, the Venture, the Ecosystem, and the Macro-Environment. We contend that startup sustainability is an emergent property of strategic alignment and adaptive resilience across these levels. By analyzing success and failure through this lens—drawing on cases ranging from clean-cooking ventures to digital platforms—we offer a holistic model for founders, investors, and policymakers. The framework provides a diagnostic tool for identifying vulnerabilities and crafting interventions that move beyond simplistic prescriptions, fostering ventures that are not only profitable but also resilient, inclusive, and capable of contributing meaningfully to sustainable development in their respective contexts.

Research Paper

Keywords: Startup Sustainability, Emerging Economies, Entrepreneurial Ecosystems, Institutional Voids, Founder Resilience, Business Model Innovation

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Mina Fam, Z. (2026). Anchoring Resilience: A Multi-Level Framework for Startup Sustainability in Emerging Economies, Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, 14(1), 1–22.