1 April 2008
This article provides a brief history and overview of the numbers of incubators in the world.
Brief overview of the global incubation industry.pdf
Business incubation emerged as an economic (and as a consequence/subsequently social) development tool in the early and mid 1980s, initially in the USA and Europe, subsequently spreading around the world. Today, observers and the ‘global business incubation community’ estimates about 5,000 business incubators in the world, depending on definitions and without accurate ‘audit’ data, of which at least 1,000 are in Asia (approximately half in China), 1,000 in North America, 900 in Europe and close to 400 in Latin America (with a sizeable and robust industry in Brazil). There are two or more business incubators in 70 countries and 60 national or regional business incubator associations. In some countries, such as the USA, Australia and China there is more than 15 years of experience and the industry is relatively mature, whereas in many other developed and developing countries it is a relatively new industry.
For further information about the business incubation industry and facts & figures, please refer to the attachment.