Women Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Economic Development: Evidence from Nigeria

The emerging field of entrepreneurship in 20th century has made women entrepreneurs to be creative and innovative. However, in Africa especially Nigeria, women have historically been disadvantaged in accessing not only material resources, but also have been deprived of resources like finance, market information and modern technology. This study examined the influence of women entrepreneurs on sustainable economic development in Nigeria. Other specific objectives were to  assess the perceived contributions of women entrepreneurs to economic sustainability in Nigeria; ascertain the ways in which women entrepreneurs have been empowered; determine the factors motivating women into entrepreneurship  and to identify the major challenges facing women towards entrepreneurship development in Nigeria. This research work was carried out among the three thousand one hundred and fifty (3,150) women entrepreneurs registered with ministry of commerce and industry in the South-Western geo-political zones of Nigeria. A total of six hundred and eighty (680) participants were selected as sample size for the study. The data collection instruments for the study were structured questionnaire and personal interview. Data analysis was performed with the aid of simple percentage, mean, chi-square and linear Regression. Results revealed that involvement of women in entrepreneurship (β = 0.310, t = 17.175, P<.001) have positive and significant influence on sustainable economic development. Results also indicated that majority of women have been empowered by voting in elections, have access to education, and they have benefited from empowerment training. Furthermore, result indicated that involvement of women in entrepreneurial activities accounted for 30.3% of the variation which was explained by the model while extraneous variables accounted for about 69.7%.  Results so revealed that lack of access to finance, work/home conflict and lack of moral support from family members are major challenges facing women entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Study concluded that involvement of women in entrepreneurship is a catalyst to the sustainable economic development. The study recommended the establishment of Women Entrepreneurship Development Centre (WEDC) by the federal/state government in collaboration with private sector to provide financial assistance, business advice, mentorship and other practicable support in order to empower the Nigerian women towards realization of the self-employment aspirations. Research paper Keywords: Women Entrepreneurs, Entrepreneurship, Sustainable Economic Development, Challenges Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Sajuyigbe, A. S., & Fadeyibi, I. O. (2017). Women Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Economic Development: Evidence from South Western Nigeria, Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, 5(2), 19–46

Adoption of the National Health Insurance Scheme and Its Influence on Organizational Commitment: An Empirical Investigation

Purpose: The study examines the influence of the adoption of the National Health Insurance Scheme on organizational commitment with particular reference to Kwara State, Nigeria. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study was adopted for the study. A purposive sampling technique was employed to select 350 civil servants from the Ministry of Health in Ilorin. Data were analyzed with the assistance of mean and ordinary least square method of estimation.  Result: The results reveal that the adoption of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) has a significant influence on organizational commitment. This indicates that the “modus operandi” of the scheme is a strong predictor of organizational commitment in Nigeria. Implication: Deduction to be made from this result is that the “modus operandi” of the scheme is a strong predictor of organizational commitment. This indicates that the sustainability of the NHIS is a guarantee in the country. This will pave the way to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of ‘universal health coverage, such as financial risk protection, access to quality essential health care services, and access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all by 2030

Financial Literacy and Financial Inclusion as Tools to Enhance Small Scale Businesses’ Performance in Southwest, Nigeria

Purpose: The study sought to examine the impact of financial literacy and financial inclusion on small businesses’ overall performance with special reference to Southwest Nigeria. Methods: Descriptive survey research sketch was adopted for this study, while the purposive sampling method was employed to choose forty small scale businesses registered with SMEDAN from each state capital of South Western of Nigeria that engaged in petty trading, bakeries, block-making, soup-making, tailoring, and agro-allied, totaling 240 participants as a sample size for the study. Data were collected by using a closed-ended questionnaire designed for the study, while simple percentage, mean, standard deviation, Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC), and Ordinary Least Square (OLS) was used to analyze the data. Results: The findings disclose that financial literacy and financial inclusion jointly and independently affect small businesses’ performance. It revealed a positive and significant relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion. However, the study depicts that majority of business operators did not have financial knowledge such as working capital management, accounting records system, financial reporting, cashbook maintenance, income statement, daily cash reconciliation, internal control on cash, and cash budget. Also, the study confirmed that the majority of small business entrepreneurs are financially excluded from micro-financing, emergency loans, employ purchase financing, business bank loans, and micro-insurance plan Services. Implications: The implication of this study is that if the Central Bank of Nigeria partnership with other professional organizations to promote financial literacy and inclusion programs to all business entrepreneurs across the nation, it will motivate more business entrepreneurs in Nigeria to have access to finance. &nbsp