INTRODUCTION
The present cry for the socio economic development for the country through ensuring both qualitative and quantitative education for the people has been an issue of concern to the citizenry. Perhaps the issue seemed most relevant nowadays is the skills training and entrepreneurship education. With the rapid rate of technological and ICT changes in work places with globalization, there is an increase in the demand for skills as a result of new business practices, new organizational structure, the application of new technologies, and the design, production, and delivery of new products and services. Skill training and entrepreneurship is designed for self-employment, job creation an national development.
Entrepreneurship contributes to the development of skilled and semi-skilled manpower for national development as well as self- employment and poverty alleviation. Skilled training and entrepreneurship education makes his products self- employed and employers of labour after graduation.
A DEFINITION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
The concept of entrepreneurship has a wide range of meaning. On the extreme a entrepreneur is a person of very high aptitude who pioneers change, on the other extreme of definition, anyone who wants to work for himself or herself is considered to be an entrepreneur.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Hisrich (2002) Entrepreneurship is the process of creating something new with value by devoting the necessary time and effort, assuming accompany financial, psychic, and social risks and receiving the resulting rewards of monetary and personal satisfaction and independence. Entrepreneurship training according to Ayeduso (2004) is a specialized training given to the student or trainees to acquire skills, ideas and managerial abilities and capabilities for self-employment than being employed for pay.The word entrepreneurship descends from the French word ‘entreprendre’, which indicates an act in which the individual attempt, try, adventure or undertake an act of some sort. It was Richard Cantillon (in 18thcentury), separated activities from those of capitalistic activities. Later, Jean Baptiste Say developed the term to relate to the change of resources from low productivity to that of high productivity.
Research aims and objectives
- To identify and critically review the academic literature on entrepreneurship skills,
with a focus on whether and how such skills are acquired within established small businesses. - To distil from such literature the key components of ‘entrepreneurship skills’ and
how they are acquired, developed, measured and assessed. - To review policy initiatives in selected countries and draw out lessons to be learnt
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The study adopt desk research method in terms of information gathering. Which means that part of the work was based on library research. In doing this, the genesis of the entrepreneurship and education development were sourced .The background information for the work were obtained from secondary sources which included texts, journals, magazines monographs newspapers, Yaba college of technology at 40th year(1948-88), 1992 publication etc. Desk research was also supplemented by field work.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of this study is to find out the followings:
a. To determine the various enterprise and their activities in the area of study.
b. To examine the nature of the management practices and their sources of fund.
c. To determine area of government assistance and to pinpoint area where assistance is lacking.
d. To determine major problems on countered by these entrepreneurs.
e. To make recommendation based on the findings, which will be great help to other entrepreneurs and new aspirants into the business.
CHAPTER TWO
THE HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN NIGERIA
The development Of entrepreneurship in Nigeria isn’t something that have been in the dart, it is as old as man itself. It started when man began the quest for creating and amassing wealth. It also underscores the fact that man needed to propagate wealth for his wellbeing. This was regarded as the beginning of early entrepreneurship in Nigeria. In ancient times, the man had the competency to produce the implements and other tools that made his profession easier. The farmers, for instance, went into the production of local hoes, cutlasses, etc while the fishermen meticulously crafted baskets that helped to catch fishes. Entrepreneurship at this stage was crude and basic subsistence in nature. Entrepreneurship is best described as the art or science that involves innovation and risk-taking for profit.
In Nigeria, there are proofs and evidence of entrepreneurial development that occurred in ancient time. This entrepreneurial effort of time past has left us a lot to learn from and how to further strengthen the various segments of entrepreneurship. In elementary school, we were taught that the reward for entrepreneurship is profit. Therefore, it is safe to affirm that basically, profit has been the driving force of an entrepreneur. This has given the enablement for a man to create and distribute wealth.
The development of entrepreneurship can take effect only when a need is discovered and a measure taken to tackle them. The early entrepreneurs were able to identify the needs of people around them thereby strategizing efforts to serve the needs at that point. What differentiates entrepreneurship from other ventures is clear-cut. What distinguishes entrepreneurship is that it requires the application of a purely practical approach. It involves undertaking the production and delivery goods and services people need in a locality at a particular period of time. It also involves an investment of money with the expectation and hope of gathering returns which are known as profit.
IMPORTANCE OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP FOR STUDENT
Read More Recent trend shows that more and more students are realizing that getting a degree doesn’t confirm a job anymore. Well! We were told to work hard in studies, so that we can find a good job as a reward. Unfortunately the ground reality is quite different. In today’s world you can’t rely on anyone to be successful. If you want success, you have to create your own career path.
Most of students couldn’t even find an unpaid internship to start their career. Well! I know it’s tough out there, but every problem has a solution. If you cann’t find an internship, start a small side project or a side business. Your project can offer you all the professional benefits of an internship. Don’t worry if you fail in your business, you will always end up with some learning and have experience. But if your
business becomes successful, you will become a job provider instead of a job seeker. In the past students don’t prefer entrepreneurial experience, mainly because the cost of starting a new business was very high and most students don’t have the resources to pull it off.
Time has Finally Changed!
Research shows that almost ever educational institution in the world is focusing on developing entrepreneurial skill in students. In fact there are lots of employers that are looking for students with entrepreneurship experience. Main reason is that the students with entrepreneurial mindset are accountable for their own actions and most importantly they know how to execute. Entrepreneurship helps in developing communication and sales skills that are the key component of business today. It brings innovative ideas which are the backbone of modern cooperative sector
ENTREPRENEURSHIP AS A COMPETENCE FROM THE ACADEMIC PERSPECTIVE
Defining entrepreneurial competences proved to be particularly challenging because an agreed structure or common understanding of the topic does not emerge clearly from the literature. Entrepreneurial competences and competencies are generally seen as important factors for business growth. The policy discourse around competences and competencies is, however, very fragmented (Chandler & Jansen, 1992; Baron & Markman, 2000; Winterton, 2002; Lazear, 2004; Mitchelmore & Rowley 2010; Marram et al., 2014). Even more fragmented is the research around entrepreneurship education that derives from this conceptualisation (Johannisson, 1991; Henry et al., 2005; Lee & Wong, 2007; Ojala & Heikkila, 2011; Fairlie & Holleran, 2012; O’Connor, 2013; Rideout & Gray, 2013; Marram et al., 2014).
Nonetheless, the concepts of competency and competence seem to be the basis of a common and multidisciplinary definition of entrepreneurship competences. ‘Competency’ refers to the individual’s behavioural characteristics, motivations and personal traits whilst ‘competence’ refers to tangible and reckonable outcomes such as actions and performances that can be eventually assessed against standard measures. In the course of this study, we have identified and classified the conceptualisations of competence and competency and mapped these concepts on the Knowledge-Skill-Attitude framework (European Parliament & Council, 2006). According to this reference, Knowledge and Skills are common to both definitions of competence and competency. ‘Attitude’, whilst directly related to the domain of competency, is increasingly becoming a cross-cutting issue common to the two domains.
THE STRUGGLES OF STUDENT ENTREPRENEURS IN NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES
Attending a university and graduating with a good degree was all you needed to secure a good job in Nigeria. Today, things have changed, good jobs are scarce and a university degree no longer guarantees one. Unfortunately, universities in Nigeria are still not keeping up with this change.
Even though the need to create more businesses is evident, many institutions of higher learning still focus on raising employable graduates rather than entrepreneurial ones. So students typically get into and out of schools with the sole aim of becoming great employees only to have their dreams shattered, more often than not.
Without the necessary support systems in schools, students who become entrepreneurs have a slim chance of building truly successful businesses.It’s time for Nigerian Universities to wake up, you ’d likely not hear anything close to this from student entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Apart from the business connections that can grow amongst students, the only real benefit attributes to tertiary education — many Nigerian universities remain unsupportive of the plight of the entrepreneurs that they house.
While schools all over the world are developing strong systems to support student entrepreneurs, the typical Nigerian school is still designed for everyone to be full-time students — student entrepreneurs are frequently perceived as unserious, especially by their lecturers. And not many students can beat the odds and bring their dreams to life in these conditions even if they can dream.
Yet with all the collaborative opportunities that live in a university presents and with advancements in technology, universities can play an active role in raising more successful businesses. Clearly, the push for more entrepreneurial youth goes beyond taking a mandatory entrepreneurship course, that is often boring and taught by inexperienced lecturers. Many students need room to experiment and gain practical experience in the area.
Revamping campuses with the entrepreneurial spirit also recounts how some of the people he started his entrepreneurial journey with gave up along the line to face their academics squarely and find a job afterward.
While juggling entrepreneurship and schooling is no easy task, it can be easier and it should be made easier for the innovative minds in schools. Only a few schools in Nigeria have adopted business hubs
on campuses, however, business incubators have become a necessity to foster entrepreneurship amongst students.
SOME OF THE CHALLENGES FACED BY ENTREPRENEURS IN NIGERIA.
- Difficulty in securing loans from financial institutions:
- Poor state of the country’s infrastructure:3. Difficulty in getting venture capital: getting capital to finance entrepreneurial endeavors in Nigeria is extremely difficult, due to the lack of stability in the political and social economic system.
- Inconsistency in the policies of government
- The desire for quick returns: another major problem facing Nigerian entrepreneurs is the desire for quick returns.
CHAPTER THREE
THE PROSPECTS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN NIGERIA
a. Economic development: the role of entrepreneurship in economic development cannot be overemphasized. This is owing to the fact that the profits made by entrepreneurs’ flows as an increase into the national income and thereby increases the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The contribution of SME’s in industrial sector to the Nigerian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was valued at 37% thereby, making it the second largest contributor to the nation’s GDP after the oil sector – according to SMEDAN in 2009.
b. Creation of employment opportunities: entrepreneurship encourage the creation of employment opportunities for the Nigerian citizens, which in turn increases the participation of small business owners in contributing to the nation’s development, by drastically reducing unemployment in our society. The existence of small businesses in the country has provided her citizens with more jobs than the multinationals. Entrepreneurship is so vast that young entrepreneurs can sit in the comfort of their homes and make legitimate cash.
c. Conservation of foreign exchange: entrepreneurship will reduce the importation of raw materials, machineries, equipment’s, and the payment of foreign experts. The moment Nigerian government starts supporting young and aspiring entrepreneurs, and encourage locally produced goods. We will begin to experience change in various sectors of the economy which will in turn conserve our foreign reserve.
d. Improved standard of living: encouraging entrepreneurship development will go a long way to improve the standard of living of the Nigerians through innovations.
e. Reduction in rural-urban migration: another major reason for promoting entrepreneurship in a developing country like Nigeria, is to downplay rural-urban drift syndrome. The migration of people from rural areas to urban areas in search of white collar jobs which has resulted to high rate of crimes and congestion in cities like Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt will reduce when government encourage entrepreneurship.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Entrepreneurship developed which forma the bedrock of all business evolutions and economic miracles of the nation has its peculiars problems, which go a long way in satisfying its growth and development among which are:
a. The most problems of entrepreneurship development are lack of fund and difficulty in securing loans from banks. Financial limitations constitute a serious set back to the entrepreneurship, they complain that banks are reluctant to grant them credit and even alleged that they often have to offer loans{s}. This inability of an entrepreneur to provide tangible collateral securities for loans make him a misfit in the competitive struggle for limited funds in our snappy economy [Onuoha B.C.1994.183 –184]
B. The desire for quick returns in business and application of fraudulent practices are inimical to sustain entrepreneurship growth.
C. Lack of adequate planning, many enterprises do not hire trained and qualified manager to run their business for them.
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY.
This research on the problems and prospects of entrepreneurship development is not an exception to the usual constraints associated with research work. The constraints are:
a. Time: Time has been a major constraint that has militated against the realization of the objectives of the research; especially as the researcher had to carry it out in the midst of academic pressure.
b. Finance: Finance being the life wire of any business and any research work, has posed a major barrier that has immensely militated against the realization of researcher’s objectives. The researcher faced inadequate finance for the acquisition of the necessary stationeries for the work.
C. Negative attitude of some people interviewed some of the people interviewed were not ready to give out the required information’s needed due to the fact that, they think, the researcher wants to know about their privacy, this issue militated against the realization of researchers objectives.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on the documentary evidence of graduate unemployment and the findings of the study,
the following recommendations were made:
- The Department of Educational Foundations in collaboration with National University
Commission (NUC) programme on entrepreneurship education should make more
deliberate efforts to identify entrepreneurship as strategic attempt to address graduate
unemployment. This could be done by cultivating entrepreneurship culture among
undergraduates as a remedy to escalating unemployment challenges among graduates of
educational administration. - There should be a linkage between seasoned lecturers and Industry/Guest lecturers on the
application of different pedagogical approach in entrepreneurial educational studies in
teaching and learning in the universities. The approach should emphasize simulation and role play experimentation, that is, exposure of students to grasp close to reality
experiences. - Lecturers and students in Educational Administration should partner with Industry/Guest
Lecturers in excursions. This opportunity will not only avail but expose students and
lecturers to successful practicing business people who would share their experiences on
regular basis and at the same time serve as ideal breeding ground for planting
entrepreneurial seed for post graduate job creation ability. - An Entrepreneurial Education Programme (EEP) should be formalized and integrated fully
into the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme in the same spirit of weekly
Community Development (CDS) of the NYSC. This if applied will in turn assist graduates
with ideal job generation, creation and development ability. - There should be a distilled university syllabi to include newest technologies and business
practice to enable students grasp business principles and enhance functional knowledge
job creation ability. - Business tycoons in the private sector such as Dangote cement company should be
involved in entrepreneurial education in training secondary and university graduates to set
up business through soft loan from the company. - All industrial establishments in Nigeria should set up satellite institutions or schools of
entrepreneurial studies to inculcate their skills of production of their goods in young
graduates. This should also include all foreign firms operating in Nigeria, in line with
the Nigerian indigenization decree.
Future Research
In the light of the scope of the study the following suggestions were made for future studies: - A similar study to compare entrepreneurial competencies needed by undergraduate’s in
faculty of education in any six Geo-Political Zones of Nigeria Universities. - Rating entrepreneurial skills needed for successful management of small scale
businesses. - Self-employment as a career choice: entrepreneurial intentions for university
education in Nigeria.
CONCLUSION
This study has revealed that development of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship is important and can be stimulated through a set of supporting institutions. However, there are a lot of challenges, but there are also prospects especially when resources in form of capital and human resources one made available in a conducive environment. In conclusion, the challenges of entrepreneurship development in Nigeria are largely that of sourcing of a capital, expertise in management of the business, poor investment decisions. The present government indicates that
there is bright future for Nigeria entrepreneurs.
REFERENCES
Adebisi, T.A. & Oni, C.S. (2012). Assessment of relevance of National Directorate of
Employment training programme to the needs of the trainees in South-West in Nigeria.
International Journal of Vocational and Technical Education, 4(3) 29-37.
Adeola, K. L. and Bolarinwa, K. (2010). Strategies for promoting entrepreneurship education
in secondary school curriculum. Business Education Journal 1, (10) 221-227
Ademiluyi, L. F. (2007) Business competencies needed for effective entrepreneurship as
perceived by fresh graduates. Business Education Journal 1(1)18-29. Babalofa, J.B. (2007) Reinventing Nigerian higher education for youth employment in a
competitive global economy. A lecture delivered at University of Calabar,
Department of Educational Administration and Planning, University of Calabar.
Bird, B. (2002). Learning entrepreneurial competencies: The first directed learning approach.
Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 1, 203-227.
Bolarin, T. A (2012). Entrepreneurial education at university level: the way forward. In
T.Bolarin and I. A. Kolo (eds) entrepreneurial education. Proceedings of the 27th congress
of the Nigerian Academy of Education, November 5th
– the Development Policy Research Unit (DPRU, 2006) Graduate unemployment in past-Apartheid
South Africa: Nature and possible policy responses. Research report compiled for business leadership South Africa. Cape Town: School of Economics, University of Cape Town.
Development Policy Research Unit (DPRU, 2007) Graduate Staying longer to find jobs than
graduates of Economics and management sciences and natural sciences. Research report
on business leadership, South Africa. Cape Town: school of Economics, University of
Cape Town.
Ekpo, P. (2010). An evaluation of graduate unemployment among university students in
Nigeria. Daily independent, February 7, p 10.
European Union Commision (2003) analysis of entrepreneurial education in all education
levels in Europe. Htt://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/entrprensurship education. Retrieved
20/6/13.
Falola, F. (2009). National University Commission (NUC) and National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) lauded over introduction of entrepreneurial studies. Sunday Punch
p.50.
Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN, 2013). National Policy on education. Lagos: NERDC press.
Hagen, E. E. (1962). On the theory of social change: How economic growth begins. Illinois:
Dorsey press.
Illesanmi, O.A. (2000). Entrepreneurial development, llorin: Kola Success
Publication International Labour Organization (ILO, 2011) Global.
Employment trends, www.ioorg/wcmsp5/group/public.../cwcmsl50440. Retrieved:
October20, 2011.
Kilby, P. (1971). Hunting the Heffalump. In Kilby (ed), entrepreneurship and economic
development. New York: The free press.
McClellan. D. C. (1961). The achieving society. Princeton Van NJ: Nostrand: Reinhold.
Publishing co.
National Directorate of Employment (NDE, 2007) Report on the registration of unemployment
persons. Planning, research and statistics. Abuja: NDE.
National Population Commission (NPC), (1998). Unemployment rates by states in Nigeria
1991 and 1993. NPC of Federal Republic of Nigeria: Analytical report of the national
level, Lagos. Pg. 102.
Nwachukwu, I (2012) Nigeria’s unemployment rate at 23.9% in 2011.http://business day on
line.com/NG/index.phb/economic. Watch/32204…) Retrieved on 20/08/14
Nwite, O. (2009) Rational for youth preparation and entrepreneurship eduction in the face of
global economic crisis i Nigeria. Annuals of Modern Education 1(1) 224-232.