Socio-Cultural and Demographic Dynamics in Sustainable Entrepreneurial Development in Nigeria
No Thumbnail Available
Date
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Description
Entrepreneurial development is now regarded as the magic bullet that can remedy some of the embedded socioeconomic
challenges facing the modem state. Poverty, unemployment, falling standards of living and dipping
personal economies of citizens have conflated to raise the national temperature of various countries to
uncomfortable levels as protests, youth restiveness, economic-related crimes and a militant and irascible
citizenry have become common symptoms of an existing economic blight. Literature on entrepreneurship points
to the positive effect of entrepreneurial activities on the civil population with greater impact on the vulnerable
sectors. This has strengthened the argument for greater entrepreneurial culture in a developing country like
Nigeria. Job creation, massive product development, strengthening of the macro economy through export of
products and services, inter alia, are some of collateral benefits of entrepreneurial activities within the society. In
achieving sustainable entrepreneurial development initiatives in Nigeria, actors within the policy, social and
business ecologies must address the socio-cultural and demographic dynamics that could hamper an effective
maturation of the entrepreneurial development process. Issues of institution building, creating the right
environment for small- and medium-scale businesses and initiatives to thrive and a general paradigm shift
towards citizen empowerment will help to overcome the hydra-headed challenges of gender bias, population
explosion, poverty, corruption, unemployment, poor infrastructure, insecurity and leadership crisis, which are
some of the banes that may tackle entrepreneurial development. Leaning on the State Theory's position that
development can be achieved through internal growth, this paper argues that for sustainable entrepreneurial
development to happen in Nigeria, certain internal contradictions bordering on socio-cultural and demographic
dynamics must be addressed