Företagskluster och närhet i Katutura, Namibia
En studie kring småföretag, närhet och klusterfördelar
In Economic Geography, there has been a strong interest of how different forms of proximity impacts businesses. In addition, there is also a strong interest in business agglomeration, as a result businesses cluster together through physical proximity, networks and knowledge. In the development sector, there is a strong interest on how to best support the creations and growth of small enterprises.This essay emphasises on the business cluster formations in Katutura, a suburb to Windhoek the capital city of Namibia. It oversees the impacts of different types of cluster formations and their effects on the businesses. In addition, this essay will identify the main clusters in Katutura and state what makes them unique from each other and what is a common cluster feature. Furthermore, it will give answers to the questions that follows: How does these forms of clusters influence businesses in Katutura? How are businesses conducted in different clusters? What benefits will the businesses derive from these forms of proximity and clustering?The data presented in the essay was collect from different clusters of business with regard to utilities, knowledge and skills, finances, and other important indicators of business wellbeing. The data is used to compare the different clusters and their forms of proximity within them.It is then concluded in the essay that the most successful clusters are those that are located at the incubation centres in terms of turn over but not with profit margins. Also, it was observed that these clusters are specialized. Furthermore, it was also observed that businesses seem to invest more in clusters with the highest innovation and diversification. In addition to the concluded observation, it was also observed that there is evolutionary processes amongst the clusters in Katutura such as described in the literature.