Enhancing productivity in Nigeria: from subsistence to transformational entrepreneurship

The development of Nigeria as an emerging economy is one of the highlights of globalization, but currently, the economy has been rife with turmoil. Despite the abundance of natural and oil resources, poverty levels have climbed, and there are high levels of corruption, inequality, suffocating economic environment, insecurity and ethno-religious crises. The country is better placed to develop a well-diversified economy but is at the crossroads of a momentous transition into the diversified economy. However, there are early signs that public-private investments are creating positive effects and Nigerians are awakening to the economic benefits of commercial agriculture, the internet of opportunities and technology entrepreneurship. Together they are creating a new type of entrepreneurship that could become the country's source of socioeconomic value creation in the form of "Transformational Entrepreneurship." One of the recommendations is the need to have a multidimensional approach to entrepreneurial talent, innovation fostering, financial access, and training to foster entrepreneurial ecosystem with less constrained growth potentials

Determinants of Household Income and Employment Choices in the Rural Agripreneurship Economy

The paper seeks to link the discussions on diversification and pluriactivity among farm business owners (FBOs) and examine the perspective in the context of small-scale farming. It asks households if diversification and wage-seeking behaviour in the rural agripreneurship economy is prompted by push or pull factors. The quantitative method enabled the analysis of data generated from 480 rural FBOs from Nigeria (regarded as entrepreneurs or agripreneurs). The findings reveal that education, asset endowment, access to credit, and good infrastructure conditions increase the levels of household diversification. Lack of access to capital, low farm income and fluctuations in farm income were the three most influencing factors (push factors) towards diversification

Rural Non-farm Livelihood Diversification and Poverty Reduction in Nigeria

The aim of this research is to provide analysis of the rural non-farm sector in Nigeria by investigating inter-linkages between farm and non-farm activities. By critical analysis using quantitative and qualitative research methods to investigate farm and non-farm sectors, the research attempts to reveal the complex linkages between these activities undertaken by rural households. The analysis employs household surveys aimed at collecting primary data undertaken to investigate various aspects of rural livelihoods including sources of income, employment, diversification and determinants of household income. The research provides analysis of Rural Micro and Small Enterprises (RMSEs) in the non-farm sector. It investigates the sources of rural livelihoods, which are primarily based on farming activities. However, farming in this area is still carried out by about 80 percent of households in a traditional subsistence system with crude implements and in scattered plots of about 2.0 hectares or less. This subsistence farming system has resulted in increasing changes in decision making, along with dynamic processes of socio-economic and cultural changes including assets and resources which households depend on for their survival. Diversification of income activities has become an important aspect of rural livelihoods due to continued low agricultural income and output. Non-farm income activities have the potential to reduce rising rural unemployment, providing more income opportunities for young people, women and other vulnerable groups. It can provide capital for investment in child education, home improvement, asset formation and on-farm innovation or expansion. This research argues for an integrated approach towards rural development and poverty reduction through the promotion of both agriculture and non-agricultural sectors. Analysis of household income structure and determinants indicate that non-farm income accounts for about 44% of total household income and non-farm income has become an important source of capital for on-farm and off-farm investment. Ownership of non-farm enterprise, household labour force, level of education, age, farm size (land), financial capital (level of savings) and access to basic infrastructure are the main determinants of household income. Using disaggregated and distributional data the study found variations in effect of the various factors on household income on different groups of households

Coronavirus with Looming Global Health and Economic Doom

As major cities of the World go into lockdown, government and health experts scramble for solutions to the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, this article examines the development of the virus and its consequences. It analyses the implications to the global economy, education, social and health. The aim is to provide analysis that contributes to an understanding of the pandemic defying all odds and predictions. Also, it explains what the disease is, the signs, how we can protect ourselves, health and economic implications

The UK offshore wind job creation capacity, O&M costs and content analysis

This paper focuses on exploring the operation and maintenance costs and job creation capacity of the UK offshore wind sector. The UK Government long-term target is to use the offshore wind farm (OWF) renewable energy to meet 15% of its renewable energy target by 2020. OWF operation and maintenance market opportunities have been encouraging firm to make major investment in the sector. This emerging market presents opportunities to turbine manufacturers, wind farm developers and small & medium enterprises (SMEs), thereby leading to significant job creation capacity. About 1,183 offshore wind turbines have been installed in the UK with capacity of 4,042 megawatt (MW) and this sector currently provides skilled jobs to about 6,830 full-time employees. Cost reduction in the operation and maintenance and a strong supply chain are necessary if the UK Government targets for the sector is to be achieved

Transgenerational business legacies and intergenerational succession among the Igbos (Nigeria)

The main purpose of this study is to highlight the entrepreneurial exploits of an ethnic group within the African context. The research context is the Igbos in Eastern Nigeria who have been celebrated as the pinnacle of African entrepreneurship. The study also draws on the narratives of 25 experienced business owners, and the emerging data thematically analysed to identify key variables associated with transgenerational business legacies and succession. Additional insight on salient cultural and community nuances like the role of Di-okpara (first son), Umunna (sons of the land), Ikwu (members of a Kindred) and Umuada (daughters of the land) were unravelled through interview transcripts and validated by respondents. These insights inform a contribution to the discourse of ethnic or indigenous entrepreneurship, which has both theoretical and policy implications

Productive Jobs Creation in Nigeria: How can Higher Education Institutions Involve Industry Experts into Direct Learning?

This study adopts qualitative research approach to learn how the Nigerian higher education (HE) institutions can involve industry experts to direct learning - an approach that can facilitate productive jobs creation in Nigeria. Higher education (HE) graduates are expected to have acquired the right skills through effective learning that prepares them for productive jobs creation. Previous studies reveal that majority of the Nigerian HE graduates are unemployable, unable to either start small businesses, become self-employed or paid employment due to poor skills development. As a result, a greater number of the HE graduates roam the streets in search for white-collar jobs which are not readily available

’Beyond Words and Rhetoric – Small Voluntary Organisations and Effective Refugee Integration in the Communities

Integration is a complex, contested and multidimensional concept. This paper examines the impact of small voluntary agencies (SVA) in the integration of refugees into social, economic and citizenship structures in the United Kingdom (UK). This study is rooted in in-depth interviews with 20 participants and a case study (ethnography research) that focuses on a refugee-assisting organisation in Southeast England. Our findings reveal cases of exemplary leadership in actions and social solidarity exhibited by SVA through innovative actions aimed at helping individuals and communities which may be particularly disadvantaged. It revealed the mixed embeddedness that these agencies create that enable refugees to pursue a new life, employment and citizenship. One of the limitations of the study is the focus on one case study. However, this provided an opportunity to conduct in-depth interviews and examination of the research objectives. With the ever-decreasing government revenues, there is evidence of the tremendous achievement of the voluntary sector (VS) in many endeavours in the community. This provides an opportunity for a more strategic partnership between public and private actors. This study provides the opportunity to explore the relatively under-research and under-publicized role of SVA in the migrants and refugee literature

Open Innovation System and Entrepreneurship: A case study of the Offshore Renewable Energy

This article examines the innovation in the offshore renewable energy (ORE) industry using Open Innovation System (OIS), platforms and network perspective. Despite the benefits of ORE, Operation and Maintenance (O&M) costs account for up to one-third of total wind energy project lifecycle expenditure requiring relationships with multiple external partners to improve the supply chain and O&M activities. Therefore, management of the O&M activities of the supply chain and logistics has become an excellent place to drive efficiency and reduce cost thereby creating innovative products and services, business clusters and job opportunities. Findings show how strategic resources help offshore companies to reduce cost and achieve environmental, economic and social benefit derived from ORE. The OIS is used to explain the importance of new resources in technology, knowledge sharing and relationships, and stresses the role of stakeholders in addressing the challenges. The limitation of this study is related to reliance on secondary data. However, it provided an opportunity to elaborate on OIS theory and reinforces the importance of knowledge sharing, collaboration and network advantage. Overall, this provided insights into the constituent resources needed for successful OIS, regional entrepreneurship and helps move renewable energy research from a technological advancement challenges to a problem of strategic resources and relational capabilitie

A Triad of Uppsala Internationalization of Emerging Markets Firms and Challenges: A Systematic Review

The economic advancement of emerging markets such as China, Brazil, and India has been regarded as one of the benefits of a globalized world. This paper revisits and evaluates the Uppsala model to teases out the process, speed, determinants, and challenges of early internationalization approaches of firms in transition and emerging markets (TEMs). Applying Systematic Literature Review (SLR), this article collects, disintegrates, and categorizes previous studies, synthesizing the theoretical models to shed light on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) characteristics, behaviour, and motives to internationalise, as well as the approaches to internationalisation. This method identified 183 articles published between 2008–2018 from 84 international journals. A triad (a set of three related things) highlights the three main features of the Integrated Uppsala Model including the basic assumptions, influential factors, and competitive strategies of firms. The findings suggest that the institutional–legal environment constitutes key barriers that firms in TEMs must overcome to develop an early internationalization strategy. It appears that internationalization literature focusing on emerging markets is biased towards China. The review identifies a need for future studies to (i) focus on emerging markets firms in Africa and South America; and (ii), provide a cross-country analysis and evaluation of internationalization strategies of TEMs