Building food security: The role of social entrepreneurship and agripreneurial ecosystems

This study examines how social entrepreneurship operates within agripreneurial ecosystems to enhance food security in Bangladesh, a context shaped by climate vulnerability and integration into global agrifood systems. Drawing on twenty-five in-depth interviews with farmers, NGO representatives, and government officials, the study conceptualises farmers as social entrepreneurs who act as producers, employment generators, and market facilitators, enabling them to navigate environmental shocks, market volatility, and institutional constraints. The findings identify five interrelated ecosystem domains, policy, finance, human capital, markets, and culture, that collectively shape food-security outcomes. These domains interact dynamically, with farmers’ agency mediating how resources are mobilised and adapted within globally embedded contexts. Informal networks, knowledge exchange, and income diversification emerge as key mechanisms supporting resilience. Theoretically, the study reconceptualises food security as a process of building social-entrepreneurial capabilities within multi-level ecosystems. It also advances globalization scholarship by showing how global processes are mediated through local entrepreneurial practices, positioning agripreneurial ecosystems as sites of coordination between global pressures and local adaptation. Practically, the findings inform policymakers and development actors seeking to strengthen inclusive and resilient food systems through coordinated, ecosystem-based interventions.