Entrepreneurship Development:

Challenges and Prospects for

Nigeria’s Emerging Economy
John Aderibigbe
+2348033746076
john@dutconsulting.com
 Introduction
Entrepreneurship is the willingness and ability of an
individual to seek out investment opportunities, establish
and run an enterprise successfully (Inegbehebor, 1987).
The entrepreneur is essentially a person who owns or
controls a business through which income is gained.
National Directorate of Employment (NDE) (1989) in
Onyebueke and Ochonogo (2002) defined
entrepreneurship as the art which involves recognizing a
business opportunity, mobilizing resources and persisting
to exploit that opportunity. The entrepreneur takes risks,
is focused and energized by an inner drive. The ability to
develop a new venture or apply a new approach to an old
business is sole idea of entrepreneurship.
 An Entrepreneur
According to Anayakoha (2006), the entrepreneur is
one who chooses or assumes risks, identifies
business opportunity, gathers resources, initiates
actions and establishes an organization or
enterprise to meet such demand or market
opportunity. From this definition, the entrepreneur
is seen as an independent, self-sufficient individual
who is willing to sink or swim with his/her idea. It
can thus be asserted that an entrepreneur is a
person who in the bid to survive makes profit and
owns his/her own business. He/she effectively
utilizes his/her abilities and potentials confidently.
 Difference between Entrepreneurs and
Business Owners
Objectives & Views Small Business Owner Entrepreneur
1. Primary Motivation To Make a Living To Make a Change and Impact
2. Financial Status Yet to achieve financial freedom Has achieved financial freedom
3. Career Objective Self-Employment Financial Freedom
4.Creativity Traditional Innovative and revolutionary
5. Business Strategy Creating More Sales Providing Value
6. View of Assets Real Estate and Inventory Employees & Customers
7. Risk Taking Profile Stability Takes Risks
8. Employee Market Rate or Below Will Pay for Top Talent
Compensation
9. Work Environment Extension of Owner’s Home Fast Paced and Growth Focused
10. Investment Profile Main Investor/Owner of Company Investor/Involvement in Different
Businesses
11. Daily Actions Day to Day Manager Strategy, Growth and Collaboration

12. Work Style Long-Term and Enjoys Repetitive Short-Term and a Serial
Tasks Innovator/Inventor
13. Focus Focuses on competition Focuses on cooperation
 Poverty and Unemployment
Trends in Nigeria
As normal economic agents, the manufacturing
firms started to reduce their workforce. In the
public sector, embargo was placed on
employment. More importantly with the
simultaneous rapid expansion in the educational
sector, new entrants into the labour market
increased beyond the absorptive capacity of the
economy (Central Bank of Nigeria, 2003). These
developments have eventually worsened the
unemployment situation in the country.
 Role Entrepreneurs in Solving
Poverty and Unemployment
The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, a
research program aimed at assessing the
national level of entrepreneurial activity in
selected countries, conducted an
entrepreneurship and economic growth study
on 48 countries in 2008. According to the study,
the economic growth of a country is directly and
highly correlated to the level of entrepreneurial
activity in industrialized countries.
Role Entrepreneurs in Solving Poverty
and Unemployment Issues in Nigeria
• Entrepreneurs will solve the problem by:
• Creating jobs for self and others- direct and
indirect
• Producing product of economic value
• Contributing to the GDP
• Contributing to the export market and foreign
earnings of the country
 Challenges of Entrepreneurs in
Nigeria
• Lack of entrepreneurial and technical
competencies
• High interest rates
• Dearth of credit facilities
• Poor infrastructural facilities
• Policy summersaults
• Harsh and competitive business environment
• Business climate that promotes mediocrity
rather than meritocracy
• High level corruption
Doing Business Rankings – the importance of credit
Nigeria South Africa Malaysia Kenya Brazil Israel Latvia Singapore
Ease of Doing Business 125 34 23 95 129 29 27 1
Starting a Business 108 67 88 124 126 34 51 4
Employing workers 37 102 61 78 138 90 128 1
Registering property 178 90 86 125 120 147 58 16
Getting credit 87 2 1 4 87 4 4 4
Protecting investors 57 10 4 93 73 5 57 2
Enforcing contracts 94 85 59 126 100 99 15 13
Closing a business 94 76 57 79 131 41 88 2
Sources: World Bank/IFC Doing Business Rankings 2009
Levels of Interest Rates between 1990 and 2002

Year Interest Rate Exchange Rate

(Prime %) N/US$(+)
1990 25.5 9.0001
1991 20.1 9.7545
1992 29.80 19.6609
1993 36.09 22.6309
1994 20.19 22.6309
1995 20.20 81.2
1996 19.10 81.2
1997 18.40 82.0
1998 18.30 83.8
1999 28.60 101.81
2000 25.80 121.43
2001 31.20 134.41
2002 30.00 134.05
Source: Federal Office of Statistics (FOS) & Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
 Corruption Perception Index
Country Ranking
New Zealand 1
Denmark 2
Singapore 3
Israel 32
South Africa 55
Malaysia 56
Tunisia 65
Brazil 75
Malawi 89
Liberia 97
Gabon 106
Algeria 111
Egypt 111
Nigeria 130
Cameroun 146
Myanmar 178
Afghanistan 179
Somalia 180

Source: Transparency International Corruption Index Report, 2009

 Entrepreneurial Empowerment
• Promoting entrepreneurship among Nigerian
youths to tackle problems of poverty and
unemployment is not an easy task. These
problems therefore will demand that the youths
be empowered with creative problem-solving
skills. The training of educated individuals who
can function effectively in the society for the
betterment of self and the society will require
special attention as the system will be
deliberately set to concern itself with the
development of sound human capital required
for national development (Ocho, 2005).
 Entrepreneurial Empowerment
Entrepreneurship education will enable potential
entrepreneurs and create avenues for people to:
manage innovations; manage entrepreneurial process;
and develop their potentials as managers of creativity
in given fields. It provides practical applications for
students. Training in entrepreneurship has been used
by nations like Germany to set up unique engineering-
oriented business programmes in the university where
their potential engineers are encouraged to seek out
ideas and subsequently develop the promising ones
from invention phase to commercialization.
 Entrepreneurial Empowerment
• Practically speaking therefore, stakeholders must
do the following:
• 1. ensure that schools deliberately provide sector
specific skills needed for the development of human
capital, use professional and entrepreneurs as
instructors and mentors.
• 2. teach entrepreneurship and creativity at an early
age.
• 3. organize for curricular integration of education,
entrepreneurship and community development
 Business vs Entrepreneurial
Empowerment
• What we had in the past had been more of
business empowerment in which people learn
a particular business and later start. It has
provided limited potential for growth
• Entrepreneurial empowerment would involve
a total mindset change as well as the
development of the right attitude and skills for
development.
 Constraint of Entrepreneurship
Education in Nigeria
There are several factors that hinder entrepreneurship education in Nigeria.
they include:
• poor knowledge based economy and low spirit of competition
• poor enterprising culture
• Dearth of competent entrepreneurship teachers, materials and
equipment.
• unavailability of fund
• non-inclusion of entrepreneurship programme in the school curricula
• poor societal attitude to Technical and Vocational Education development
• inadequate facilities and equipment for teaching and learning
• insensitivity of government to enterprise creation and expansion strategy
• poor plan and execution of processes of action
• Isolated pockets of ineffective programmes and management
incompetency
(Oviawe and Ekhovbiye, 2008).
 Student Entrepreneur
• Google
The quintessential account of innovators turned entrepreneurs
are Larry Page and Sergey Brin of who founded Google while
they were students at Stanford University. Brin is the son of
Russian immigrants of modest means. They are both still
students on the doctoral program at Stanford from which they
are on sabbatical. The company was incorporated as Google Inc.
on 4 September 1998 at a friend's garage in California with start-
up capital of approximately $1.1 million. IN a very short time, the
Google search engine attracted a loyal following among a
growing number of Internet users, who liked its simple design
and useful results. As of March 31, 2009, the company has
19,786 full-time employees with assets totaling over $31billion.
 Fostering Entrepreneurship
A typical line of inquiry could analyze the decisions of
individuals to become either wage-earners or self-
employed or focus primarily on personal factors, such as
psychological traits, formal education and other skills,
financial assets, family background and previous work
experience that may influence or affect entrepreneurs. An
analysis of entrepreneurship at the firm level would focus
on market-specific determinants of entrepreneurship,
such as profit opportunities and opportunities for entry
and exit. The macro perspective focuses on a range of
environmental factors, such as technological, economic
and cultural variables as well as government regulation.
 Fostering Entrepreneurship
Level of Condition Crucial element Impact
involvement

Wealth/ self
Individual Psychological Attitude/ skills
actualization

Firm
Firm Business culture Startups Performance

Enabling
environment/
Macro governance
ease of doing
Economic growth
business
 Responsibilities in Promoting
Entrepreneurial Spirit
• Individuals should develop the right mindsets,
attitudes and skills required for wealth
creation and self actualization
• Firms especially financial institutions should
provide the right financial framework that
would create easy access to startup credits.
• Government should provide enabling
environment that makes doing business
easier- tax holidays, export support,
incubation centres, credit guarantees etc
 Prospects for Entrepreneurship in
Nigeria
• Entrepreneurs can tap into opportunities in:
– Policy support from various levels of government like the
creation of the Entrepreneurship Development Centre
– The crisis and under utilized sectors of the economy like
energy, export etc
– Changing trends- cash to cashlite economy
– Under utilised resources- Labour intensive economy
– Changing technology in every sector of the economy
– Renewable energy
 Conclusion
"I had to make my own living and my own opportunity!
But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for opportunities
to come. Get up and make them". Madam C.J. Walker
(December 23, 1867 – May 25, 1919) an African-
American businesswoman, hair care entrepreneur and
philanthropist. She made her fortune by developing
and marketing a successful line of beauty and hair
products for black women under the company she
founded, Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company.
Thank You.
 References
• Oviawe, Jane Itohan (2010); Repositioning Nigerian Youths for Economic
Empowerment through Entrepreneurship Education. Department of
Vocational and Technical Education Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Edo
State, Nigeria
• Oteh, Arunma (2009). The Role of Entrepreneurship in Transforming the
Nigerian Economy. Seventh Convocation Lecture Igbinedion University, Okada,
Edo State
• Anyakoha, E.U. (2006). Practical tips for economic empowerment and survival.
Nsukka: AP Express. DiaBelen, A., Oni, B., & Adekola, A. (2000). Labour market
prospects for university graduates in Nigeria. Washington D.C.: World Bank.
• Diejomal, U. & Orimolade, W. (1991). Unemployment in Nigeria: Economic
analysis of scope, trends and policy issues. Nigerian Journal of Economic and
Social Sciences 13 (2), 127 – 132.
• Eno-Obong, H. (2006). Challenges of entrepreneurship in home economics and
enhancement strategies. Journal of Home Economics Research (7), 69 -75.