The Role of Quadruple Helix in Fostering Social Innovation through Women’s Entrepreneurship. A Case Study of Sri Lanka

Sammanfattning: Aftermath of the Tsunami disaster in 2004 and current COVID-19 pandemic, developing nations have faced serious economic disparities. Sri Lanka, an island nation in South Asia, has faced the same economic hardships that many economies face globally. The hardest-hit segment of this economic incongruences has been the marginal communities. Post-Tsunami disaster development scenarios have revealed female entrepreneurs of marginal communities as social innovators. Through foreign and governmental aid, the said women entrepreneurs have managed to develop village economies and empower local society. However, as the international aid reduced over time, due to lack of empowerment, economic hardship and domestic abuse, female entrepreneurship has reduced throughout the nation (Goonetilleke, 2015). Currently, the prominent support that seems to empower women entrepreneurship have been mostly via non-governmental organizations, which have induced limited collaborations between the government agencies, industries and universities. Yet, there is lack of transparency and lack of partnership within these actors. Throughout the study, I portray that by creating a knowledge economy via strengthening the quadruple helix, it is possible to increase female entrepreneurship thus leading social innovations in marginal communities. Moreover, the findings of this research I propose for practical policy implementations, by creation of regional incubators which are accessible to marginal communities. I propose regional incubators will act as a collaborative agent between the government agencies, various industries, regional universities, and of course, the civil society. Furthermore, they will act as knowledge transfer offices. An innovative hub of this nature will act as a beacon of female entrepreneurship and as a forefront of social innovation.