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SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISES AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT IN ANAMBRA (A STUDY OF NJIKOKA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF ANAMBRA STATE)

1.1    Background to the Study

Small Scale Enterprises are sub-sectors of the industrial sector which play crucial roles in industrial development (Ahmed, S. 2006). Following the adoption of Economic reform programme in Nigeria in 1981, there have been several decisions to switch from capital intensive and large scale industrial projects which was based on the philosophy of import development to Small Scale Enterprises which have better prospects for developing domestic economy, thereby generating the required goods and services that will propel the economy of Nigeria towards development. It is base on this premise that Ojo O. (2009), argued that one of the responses to the challenges of development in developing countries particularly, in Nigeria, is the encouragement of entrepreneurial development scheme. Despite the abundant natural resources, the country still finds it very difficult to discover her developmental bearing since independence. Quality and adequate infrastructural provision has remained a nightmare, the real sector among others have witnessed downward performance while unemployment rate is on the increase. Most of the poor and unemployed Nigerians in order to better their lots have resorted to the establishment of their own businesses. Consequently, Entrepreneurship is fast becoming a household name in Nigeria. This is as a result of the fact that the so called white collar jobs that people clamor for are no longer there. Even, the touted sectors (Banks and companies) known to be the largest employer of labour are on the down-turn following the consolidation crisis and fraudulent practice of the high and mighty in the banking sector. The companies of course are folding up as a result of erratic power supply, insecurity and persistent increase in interest rate which has lead to high cost of production and undermines profit making potentials of companies operating in Nigeria. As a result of banking sector practices and continuous folding up of companies, a lot of Nigerians are thrown into unemployment  which inevitably detriment the economic situation of the country.

Youth  empowerment,  beyond  formal  education,  will  involve  exposure  to,  and up-grading  of  relevant  skills,  instilling  core  values,  increasing  competence  and  efficiency  and  creating  an environment for the implementation and sustainability of acquired skills, amongst other things (Ahmed, S. 2006). Youth, has been defined as the prime stage of life to set a young person onto the pathway to prosperity. However, this is also a period  of  risk,  it  is  during  this  stage  in  life  that  young  people  tend  to  drop  out  of  school,  experience unemployment  and  unwanted  pregnancies,  acquire  sexually  transmitted  infections,  turn  to  violence  or  get married prematurely. In many countries the consequences of youth unemployment amount to a loss of several percentage points of GDP per year (UN Programme on Youth, 2011).

Youth empowerment is  one of the forces  which could create economic development and  impact on productivity (Ibbih, Anthony &  Itari, 2015).

Therefore, the ability to create knowledge and innovation is essential for increased productivity and global competitiveness. The introduction of microelectronics, telecommunication equipment, internet and computers into modern offices had in recent years called for training and development of competent youths who are equipped with the various skills needed by the  market. The  result of  such action  can be seen in the Nigerian youth  who are  gainfully employed  and  as  such  increases  the  productivity  of  Nigeria  through  various  training  by  government  or individuals (Usoro, 2010).

Since the office jobs that people desire are no longer there for the teeming population, and few ones that succeeded in getting the jobs are thrown out as a result of the factors identified above, the need for the government and the people to have a rethink on the way-out of this mess became imperative. Hence, the need for Small Scale Enterprises became a reality as a means of ensuring self independent, employment creation, import substitution, effective and efficient utilization of local raw materials and contribution to the economic development of our dear nation (Nigeria). All the aforestated benefits of Small Scale Enterprises cannot be achieved without the direct intervention of the government and financial institutions. Over the years, a number of policies have been formulated by the government with a view to developing Small Scale Enterprises. The Nigerian government under the then leadership of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo promulgated micro-finance policy and other regulatory and supervisory framework in 2005.

The research will therefore examine the small scale enterprise and youth empowerment in Anambra state.

1.2    Statement of the Problem

There has been stunted growths and sluggish development in the small scale enterprises regardless of increasing targeted government assistance streamlined to benefit firms operating in this sector. There were several policies in the past which gave priorities to entrepreneurship development, indicating the trust in government policy in support of small scale enterprises. The government of Nigeria identified entrepreneurship development as a major thrust to achieve economic development through small scale enterprises growth and youth empowerment.

This made Nigerian government both at National and State as well as local government to prioritize small scale enterprises development initiatives by. As such the prioritization of the small scale enterprises by government at different level is echoed in almost every policy document.

For example in the industrial development policy in vision 2020, the Nigeria aim is to promote and support small scale enterprise as they are viewed as an important engine for employment creation and economic growth. Although the government of Nigeria has been advancing targeted support in marketing, management and finance and worse still others collapsed. Egbe (2004) in this regard rated Nigeria as having one of the lowest small scale enterprises sector’s share of youth empowerment in the world, when “250 employees” was considered the yard stick in the definition of small scale enterprise. Targeted government assistance has been observed to play a pivotal role in starting, growing and medium scale enterprise in Nigeria, (Beck, 2005; Zainab, 2008; Herbert 2008 and Atino, 2001). Although some entrepreneurs in SMEs have received both financial and non financial assistance, many are still small or are facing viability problems. In Nigeria, the small scale enterprises sector is facing to contribute meaningfully to the national economy as was experienced elsewhere when governments advanced target support. Targeted government support to small scale enterprises was found to translate into economic development in countries like Indonesia where small scale enterprises accounted for 98% of youth empowerment and growth with Japan and Thailand having their small scale enterprises contributing 81% and 78% to gross domestic product (GDP) (Okoh, 2009).

This contrast has promoted the researcher to carryout a study to investigate the Small Scale Enterprises and Youth Empowerment in Anambra. As well as to find out the forms of government support render to Small Scale Enterprises and Youth Empowerment in Anambra.

1.3    Research Questions

In order to affectively investigate the problem of this research, the researcher formulated the following research questions:

1. What are the effects of small scale enterprises on youth empowerment in Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State?
2. What kind of support does the government render to small scale enterprise in order to ensure youth empowerment in Njikoka Local Government Area?
3. How sufficient is youth empowerment through small scale enterprises development initiative in Njikoka Local Government?
4. What are the challenges affecting youth Empowerment in Anambra state and how can it be tackled?

1.4   Purpose of the Study

The central objective of the study is to examine the impact of small and medium scale enterprises development on youth empowerment in Kaduna Metropolis.  The specific objectives are:

1. To examine the effects of small scale enterprises on youth empowerment in Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State?
2. To investigate the kind of support the government render to small scale enterprise in order to ensure youth empowerment Kaduna Njikoka Local Government Area?
3. To evaluate the sufficient is youth empowerment through small scale enterprises development initiative in Njikoka Local Government?
4. To examine the challenges affecting youth Empowerment in Anambra state and how can it be tackled?

1.5  Significance of the Study

This study will contribute substantially in proffering solutions (alternatives) to the youth empowerment in Anambra.

This research work is of great relevance to the society at large. This is applicable to the government, the readers of this research work and to the researcher.

The benefit of this research work to the government is that by the end of the research, the weak-points and short – comings of all the sectors of the nation would be pinpointed and displayed based on findings, thereby proffering solution to the problem.

To the reader, they will be upgraded intellectually and also will be highly informed of the up and doings of the current administration. It will also give the reader’s insight on how the women participate in politics and policy making of the nation, also partake in the political affairs of the country geared towards the achievement of national development.

At least, it will be very informative and even provide a basis on which other studies with bearing on youth unemployment in Anambra can be achieved.

1.6  Scope of the Study

This research work is limited to Small Scale Enterprises and Youth Empowerment in Anambra. A study of Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State. 2012-2020.

1.7  Limitations of the Study

In the course of writing and carrying out this project work, the research encountered many difficulties; some errors in the results of the research and from external sources of data collection. These are factors  standing as constraints thereby limiting the effect of the research result.

Among these are, time finance , scope and use of wrong statistics in data analysis, due to time limit, the research work is a time consuming one. A lot of time is taken to observe the subjects.

Most  times the behaviour of the staff changes even when they are aware that they are being observed by the researcher, this is by taking their behavior. The researcher also observed that these senior staff some time give true and false information in order to cover their branches.

How I overcome the limitations. The limitations was overcome through the use of secondary source of data collection, they are as follows: Internet, Newspaper, Textbooks and Library.

At sometime the research work lasted over two months due to large scope of area of the study.

1.8    Operationalization/Definition of Terms

1. Small Scale Enterprise: This is called a small business. A small scale enterprises is a business that employs a small number of workers and does not have a high volume of sales, such enterprises are generally privately owned and operated sole proprietorships, corporations or partnerships. Small scale enterprises make the individual own business for self – reliance independence in order to make a living.
2. Youth Employment: This is activities that intentionally seek to impact positively on young people. It is equally a process of engage in the in a meaning activity whereby they can earn a living.
3. Youth: It is the age between 18 – 25 years.
4. Industrialization: It is the development of industries in a country on a wide scale. This is the process of converting raw materials to finished products.

Third World Countries:  These are countries that have the potential to develop eg availability of natural resources and man power etc. Anambra i

1. is one of them.
2. Skilled Labour: Is the specialized part of the labor force with advanced education e.g. Physician’s plumbers, attorneys, engineers, scientists, builder’s e.t.c.
3. Unskilled Labor: Is a segment of the workforce associated with a limited skill set or minimal economic value for the performed e.g. secondary school certificate hold WAEC.
4. SAP: Structural Adjustment Programme.
5. Wealth Creation: Through real estate investing is still on of the best ways to become financially independent. Using other people money is a great wealth creation strategy, something that many successful investors are known for.

1.9       Organization of the Study

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows. Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (background of the study), statement of the problem, purpose of the study, research questions, significance of the study, scope of the study etc. Chapter two being the review of the related literature presents the theoretical framework, conceptual framework and other areas concerning the subject matter.     Chapter three is a research methodology covers deals on the research design, area of the study, population of the study, sample and sampling techniques, methods of data collection, instruments for data collection, reliability of the instruments, validity of the instruments, distribution and retrieval of instruments and methods of data analysis. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.