CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1: Background of Study

Entrepreneurship education as part of the total educational system is the type of education that involves the acquisition of skills, ideas and management abilities necessary for job creation. An entrepreneur promotes employment rather than seeking for an employment. Therefore, there is a need to embrace this type of education and provide all the necessary resources needed to make functional. Quality entrepreneurship education could be used as a tool for fighting the war against poverty and unemployment in Nigeria. Entrepreneur is simply that student, employee, unemployed, politician, teacher, nurse, doctor, lawyer, engineer, accountant, manager and indeed anyone who is able to employ the tools of entrepreneurship namely innovation and uniqueness, to translate his ideas into income generating economic activities which the society benefits from (Udu and Udu, 2015)

Unemployment, both of the educated and the uneducated manpower, has become one of the most topical and thorny issues in contemporary Nigeria. The unemployment situation has changed from previous position marked by prolonged period of unemployment and misemployment, to one in which graduates of tertiary institutions have to normally wait for a long time before getting a first job – if at all. At the beginning of this millennium, employment crises have emerged as the most challenging issues confronting many world economies.

The continuing global economic slowdown and uncertain economic prospects have resulted in a grim global economic landscape. This plunged many economies into deep recession, the ripple effects of which have affected the job markets. These effects are more pronounced in the developing and underdeveloped countries of the world, with increased unemployment being the outcome. Nigeria has one of the highest levels of youth unemployment in the world (60-65%) (Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity Report 2008). These are mostly young adults that have graduated from universities and polytechnics or institutions of higher learning. Available estimate shows that about 1.6 million persons, mostly young adult, graduate annually. In addition to this number, about 3.8 million others are certificate carrying youths that have no formal education, or have completed primary or secondary school, or dropped out from tertiary institutions all of which are annually poured into an already saturated labour market (Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity Report, 2008).

Therefore, quality entrepreneurship education will enhance job creation which will subsequently reduce unemployment, poverty and social vices in Nigeria. This will also help to improve the standard of living; hence promote social economic and political development in Nigeria which is the cardinal objective of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Also, for the recipient of entrepreneurship education to be a job creator rather than job-seeker, he might acquire essential basic skills and attitudes which will enable him to function as an entrepreneur.

There is now a very serious attention paid to entrepreneurship education in tertiary institutions in Nigeria and the world-over. Gibson (2001) defined entrepreneurship as the process of using private initiative to transform a business concept into a new venture or to grow and diversify an existing venture or enterprise with high great potential. The reason for this off-course is obvious, Nigeria educational system that turns out graduates from about 150 Universities and 50 Polytechnics and Monotechnics have not trained our graduates to be self reliant, but to depend solely on white collar jobs for sustenance. As a result, there are several graduates from Nigerian Universities today who are not gainfully employed. Apart from the book knowledge that they gained there are no requisite skills to make them self dependent. There is therefore the need to engage the youth who constitute over 60 percent of the population in meaningful engagement to avoid unhealthy alternatives for this group of people.

Henry (2003) views entrepreneurship as the engine driving the economy of nations, creating new industries, young entrepreneurs, employments and wealth. Also in the view of Agbionu (2008), entrepreneurship involves a process aimed at creating wealth for the purpose of growth, development of the environment and eradication of unemployment for national sustainability.

The 2010 Global Monitoring Report (GMR) of the United Nation Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), revealed that about 92 per cent of Nigerian population survive on less than 2 dollar daily, while about 71 per cent survives on less than 1 dollar daily – a condition many have described as inexcusable judging from the abundant natural deposits and high human population at the country”s disposal. With an estimated population of about 167 million people

(2011) and crude oil selling as high as $104 dollar per barrel in the global market as at July 2012, the high level of poverty in comparison to the abundant resources available in Nigeria is highly unacceptable. There is therefore the urgent need for government and individuals to create more job opportunities for the teaming youths.

It is believed that employment of Nigerian graduates part-time, full-time or even underemployment can be said to have eluded Nigerian youths with Nigeria said to have one of the highest rates of youth unemployment in the unindustrialized world. Despite strong economic growth, youth”s full-time unemployment rate for 2006 – 2008 in Nigeria was put at 55.9% while countries like Japan, China, India, Korea, have joined community of industrialized nations by strengthening their small scale industries. Nigeria is yet to understand the relevance of this subsector.

It is based on the above that the researcher wishes to evaluate entrepreneurship as a major approach in solving unemployment syndrome in Nigeria.

1.2: Statement of Problem

As should be expected, the lack of employment potential, make crime a more attractive option for some Nigerian university graduates. It is common to find some graduates still roaming the streets, five years after graduating in search of jobs that either is not there or for which they are not qualified. It is therefore no coincidence that crimes such as kidnapping which is now a new and attractive industry is a thriving especially in the South-Eastern part of Nigeria. Other crimes include armed robbery, car snatching, pipeline vandalization, oil bunkering, and prostitution and so on.

Furthermore, high competition for economic resources and services, over-dependence on a single natural resource (oil) and the neglect of other crucial sectors of the economy also contribute to youth unemployment in Nigeria.

Have Nigerian policy makers been able to see through the connection between entrepreneurship and unemployment? Have they been able to conceive and formulate effective policies aimed at frontally addressing unemployment among the youths? While entrepreneurship may not be the absolute panacea to youth unemployment, an enabling environment that nurtures entrepreneurship is capable of reducing youth unemployment by at least half. It was argued that entrepreneurship is capable of providing the platform towards efforts aimed at reducing unemployment as well as promoting economic growth and development.

It is in the wake of the above that this study aimed at evaluating the possibility of entrepreneurship as a major approach in solving unemployment syndrome in Nigeria.

1.3: Research Objectives

            The broad objective of this research is to evaluate entrepreneurship as a tool for reduction of unemployment in Abia State focusing on Osisioma Local Government Area.

The specific objectives are

1. To find out the possibility of solving the unemployment syndrome in Abia state through entrepreneurial development.

2. To also examine the extent to which different entrepreneurial development programmes have been able to lessen the unemployment problem in Abia state.

1.4: Research Questions

            The following research questions are formulated for the purpose of the study

1.         What is the possibility of entrepreneurship development programs solving the problems of unemployment in Abia state?

2.         To what extent have different entrepreneurship development programs lessen the problems of unemployment in Abia state.

1.5: Research Hypothesis

For the purpose of this study, the following hypotheses were formulated to guide this study:

Hypothesis I

H0: Entrepreneurship development has not contributed to solving unemployment problem in Abia state.

HI: Entrepreneurship development has contributed to solving unemployment problem in Abia State.

Hypothesis II

H0: Entrepreneurial development programmes of government have no significant impact on the eradication of unemployment in Abia state.

H1: Entrepreneurial development programmes of government have a significant impact on the eradication of unemployment in Abia state.

1.6       Scope of the Study

             The study covers the evaluation of entrepreneurship as a tool for reduction of unemployment in Abia State focusing on Osisioma Local Government Area. In the course of the research work, effort shall be made to evaluate the relationship between entrepreneurship development and unemployment. More so, the research work shall examine ways through which strategic government entrepreneurship programs will help curb unemployment in Abia state.

            The study is limited to Osisioma L.G.A., the researcher consulted books, journals, magazines, newspapers and other documents not within the mentioned categories to source for his secondary data. Secondary data were sourced from both public and private resourced within the state.

1.7 Significance of the Study

The relevance of this study can be viewed in two perspectives – practical and academic.

This study will assist the policy makers, Nigerians and government in the following ways;

To highlight the importance of entrepreneurship development and its relevance in the dynamic and unpredictable nature of our economy, it will also help the policy makers and regulators to objectively analyze the impact of entrepreneurship development in assisting government to wage war against unemployment in Nigeria and it will provide useful information to entrepreneurs all over Nigeria, and encourage entrepreneurship study for a better and enabling environment.

It will contribute to the variety of literature on entrepreneurship development, it will serve as a reference material for researchers interested in further studies on the topic.

1.8: Limitations of the Study

Despite the limited scope of this study, certain constraints were encountered during the research of this project; some of the constraints experienced by the researcher were given below:

Time: This was a major constraint on the researcher during the period of the work, considering the limited time given for this study, there was not much time to give this research the needed attention.

Finance: Owing to the financial difficulty prevalent in the country and its resultant prices of commodities, transportation fares, research materials etc. The researcher did not find it easy meeting all financial obligations.

Although there are problems placed in the limitations in this study, but it did not prevent the researcher from carrying out an effective and comprehensive research work on the subject matter.