Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth: Does Entrepreneurship Bolster Economic Expansion in Africa?

Abstract

Entrepreneurship, with its focus on opportunities, is often seen as one of the cornerstones of poverty alleviation in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). One of the key objectives of modern economics is to determine factors that influence the economic development. This paper, therefore, seeks to discuss entrepreneurship as one of the factors that influence the economy of a nation, either directly or indirectly. It is a fact that entrepreneurship plays a significant part in shaping the landscape of a country's economy. Economists and policy makers recognize this fact. In fact, entrepreneurship is the engine of economic growth and it has come to be perceived as a catalytic agent for expansion and promotion of productive activities in every sphere of economic life all over the world. This research will focus on finding out how entrepreneurship influences the economy of sub-Saharan Africa. The main objective of this paper is to show the significant effect of entrepreneur towards economic prosperity. The paper argues that entrepreneur is positively correlated to economic growth than foreign aid. The paper shows that entrepreneurship positively explains the variations in the growth of African countries. It is, thus, reasonable to contend that entrepreneurship in developing economies including Africa even if replicative is instrumental to unlocking economic growth, create employment and reduce poverty. The paper further examines some of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa and provide some policy recommendations.

Designing Enhanced and Effective Entrepreneurial Access to Financial Services

“…According to Okwe (2019), it is not clear if the target of the project is met, as information about the program remains shrouded in secrecy, just as the program's operations. According to Okwe (2019), unlike TraderMoni, MarketMoni starts with N50, 000 and is targeted at medium-scale entrepreneurs made up of market women, artisans, and youth/market associations. While TraderMoni is targeted at individual petty traders through granting of loans starting at N10,000, MarketMoni is aimed at traders who access a minimum of N50,000 as loan through the petty traders' trading associations.…”

“…The obvious role of entrepreneurship in sustainable development has so much permeated development thoughts in Nigeria. For example, more than 1600 university and colleges are offering, as a course of study, entrepreneurship and small business management program as against the number that offered the course in the 1990s (Omoruyi et al 2017). Because entrepreneurship has the potential for economic growth and realizing that the entrepreneur is the key to a successful business launch, governments and nongovernmental organizations are quick to prescribe entrepreneurship as a way out of poverty.…”

Perceptions on the role of practical and simulated learning in promoting successful entrepreneurship

“…Despite the significant attention that has been directed towards work-based learning (WBL) in the HE system, it has been noted that there is a need for further study to examine the perceptions on WBL within the HE matrix. Omoruyi et al (2017) commented that many entrepreneurship programs in educational institutions are still oriented on the employability of graduates as opposed to engaging in real entrepreneurship. Franco et al (2010) asserted that the proportion of university graduates who are keen to pursue self-employment through entrepreneurship ventures remains astonishingly small.…”

Academic entrepreneurship in Sudanese universities: explaining entrepreneurial intention using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)

“…In the last few decades, entrepreneurship has gained attention universally as an essential instrument to improve economic growth. Numerous studies have stated that entrepreneurship in developing countries, including Africa, is a creative solution to resolve and counter the significant challenges and enhance economic growth, create employment, and reduce poverty (Omoruyi, Olamide, Gomolemo, & Donath, 2017). The policymakers should consider the technological knowledge that the publicly funded research institutions such as universities, laboratories, and research centers produce and transfer as drivers of this development and guarantee economic growth sustainability.…”