This paper examines the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on output growth in Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, Kenya, and Ghana. We use annual data on GDP (PPP) to proxy economic growth whilst internet users, mobile phone users, telephone users, personal computers users, and school enrolment (tertiary) covering from 1990 – 2013 were used to proxy ICT. The data were analysed in a dynamic panel environment using the 2SLS method. The robustness of the 2SLS result was confirmed by the GMM regression. The results imply a positive relationship between ICT and economic growth in accord with earlier studies. Few of the earlier studies investigate the causality aspect of the relationship and the few that did use ICT directly without resolving it into its sub-variables as done in this study. The Granger causality test results indicate that only fixed wireless communication system Granger cause GDPPPP out of the five predictors suggesting that the other ICT predictors merely associate with GDP not necessarily Granger cause it as most of the earlier studies erroneously suggest. The policy implication is that the affected countries should give policy priority to development of ICT infrastructure with specific emphasis on the fixed wireless communication system as precursors for ensuring sustainable growth in the medium and long - term.

Critical to the sustainability and continuous success of every organization is the performance concept. Hence, the cardinal goal of every organization is to achieve sustainable progressive performance for their organization. Several factors have been found to contribute to the performance of an organization. While empirical evidence indicated that innovativeness is one of the major determinants of organizational performance, many fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) were slow in their demonstration of innovative capability and it has been noted that the performance of these companies has not been impressive possibly due to the slow pace of innovativeness in the industry. This study thus investigated the effect of innovative strategies on the growth of selected FMCG firms in Lagos state, Nigeria. Survey research design was adopted for the study. The population comprised 1,337 top and middle level management staff of four notable players in the FMCG industry in the state (Honeywell flower mills Plc, Dangote flower mills, Unilever Nigeria Plc, and Cadbury Nigeria Plc). Through proportionate stratified random sampling technique, 400 out of 1,337 were sampled for the study. Four hundred copies of a validated questionnaire with Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient ranging from 0.731 to 0.956 were administered to the sample with a response rate of 84.25%. Data were analyzed using both descriptive, as well as inferential statistics. Finding revealed that innovative strategies had a significant effect on growth of FMCG firms in Lagos state, Nigeria (R2 = 0.724, β = 0.887, t = 29.663, P ≤ 0.05). The study recommends that FMCG firms management need to initiate policies that will enhance innovativeness possibly through creation and proper funding of the research and development department to effectively drive growth of FMCG firms.

Against a background of serious unemployment and dwindling fortunes of small and medium scale businesses all over Nigeria, the study has a main objective of evaluating the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) in her support role to cooperative-financed small and medium scale enterprises in Ogun State, Nigeria. The study, designed as a survey, utilized a two-pronged approach in sourcing primary data through the use of questionnaires. Out of the 140 questionnaires administered, 135 were returned representing 96.4% response rate. 27 respondents were officials of Ogun State Cooperative Federation Limited (OGSCOFED), while the remaining 108 were cooperative members who are owners of small businesses in the State. With a Cronbach α coefficient of 0.902, the internal consistency and reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed while the data were analyzed using inferential and descriptive statistics such as simple percentages, rating indices, and the Students t distribution. The study revealed that the services of SMEDAN did not significantly enhance the survival of cooperative-financed small businesses in Ogun State within the study period of 2005-2010. Among the study's recommendations are that the Federal Government of Nigeria should encourage the small and medium enterprise sector which is the nerve centre of most nations' industrial sector. Expectedly, this would serve to encourage and engage the army of the nation's fresh university graduates and subsequently reduce unemployment.

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1. Introduction Universities in Nigeria have been challenged by the situation of redesigning their curricula with a view to producing graduates with quality and essential skills that will make graduates creative, productive, dynamic, employable and potential entrepreneurs. The inability to acquire the necessary skills could make the graduates unfit in the labour market and incompetent to manage any business successfully. It has been observed that most universities in Nigeria are in the business of turning out graduates yearly, not minding the quality of skills acquired by the graduates (Akinyemi, Ofem & Ikuenomore, 2012; Shivoro, Shalyefu & Kadhila 2018). Consequently, poor skill acquisition on the part of the graduates is responsible for why most of them are incompetent and unable to contribute successfully to enterprise progress even though they are professionally or technically qualified (Edinyang, Odey & Gimba, 2015), inability to become successful firm owners (Diyoke, 2014), incompetency in the use of digital tools to construct new knowledge and analyze digital resources (McGuinness & Fulton, 2019), poor agribusiness development, low performance in agricultural sector (Kayode-Adedeji & Agwu, 2015), frustration, dejection, high level of dependence on family, friends and government (Ajufo, 2013), high poverty rate and increasing rate of unemployment (Afolabi, 2015). Be that as it may, it is becoming prominent that