Barriers to Youth Entrepreneurship in Rural Areas: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract Rural youth entrepreneurship supports economic development and limits migration, but significant barriers remain.To identify and analyze these barriers, we performed a Systematic Literature Review of peer-reviewed articles from the Web of Science Core Collection database, published between 2014 and 2025 (final sample - 57 articles). The bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer, including co-occurrence, co-authorship, citation analysis, was complemented by a qualitative content analysis to synthesize the identified barriers. The study reveals that research on this topic is geographically concentrated, with a notable focus on African contexts. The bibliometric analysis reveals a fragmented research network with limited worldwide collaboration. We identified six main rural youth entrepreneurship barriers: financial (lack of start-up capital, low income), infrastructural (inadequate roads, limited digital connectivity), educational (skills mismatch, limited entrepreneurship education), social/cultural (traditional gender roles, risk aversion), institutional (lack of government support, bureaucratic hurdles, corruption), and market-related (limited access, marketing challenges). The study points out that the barriers are extremely interdependent and therefore require a multi-dimensional, holistic intervention approach and not isolated solutions. The review also highlights key research gaps, particularly the need for more comparative, region-specific studies and a more integrated approach to gender.