Background: Previous research has shown that entrepreneurship can foster regional development in countries as Kenya, that struggle with unemployment and a stagnating GDP. However, the topic of entrepreneurial ecosystems in Kenya, its configuration of actors, and the networks between them is insufficiently studied. Thus, exploring the conditions of the ecosystem within the technology sector and investigating how both female and male entrepreneurs can mobilize their networks to survive and thrive adds novelty to entrepreneurship research.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to understand what affects the success and failure of entrepreneurs in the Kenyan technology ecosystem. Furthermore, this paper aims to explore how entrepreneurs can mobilize their network to survive and thrive and therefore adds to research on the topic of network mobilization.

Method: The chosen method for this qualitative study is a case-study approach, enabling a holistic case study on the conditions of the technology ecosystem and nested case studies to understand network mobilization efforts. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with both entrepreneurs as well as actors of the ecosystem. A thematic analysis was utilized to analyse the findings of the ecosystem followed by a comparative analysis that allowed us to identify similarities and differences between female and male entrepreneurs and their approach to utilize networks.

 Conclusion: This study extends the existing research on entrepreneurial ecosystems by identifying enablers and obstacles in the Kenyan technology ecosystem. Especially community and kinship support were identified as an enabler for resources that the government or financial institutions fail to provide. Furthermore, the paper extends knowledge on network mobilization, with emphasis on a comparison between male and female entrepreneurs.