Imperative of Small and Mediumscale Enterprises in Economic and Manpower Development in the 21st Century

Abstract

This paper investigates the imperatives of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Economic and Manpower Development in the 21st century. A survey method was used to gather data from 200 SME/Entrepreneurial officers and Managers from five randomly selected local governments in Ogun state, namely, Ijebu North, Yewa South, Sango Ota, Sagamu, and Odeda Local Government. Data were collected with a structured questionnaire and analysed with descriptive statistics to identify the perception of the roles of SMEs in Nigeria. The result of the study, therefore, reveals that the most common constraints hindering small and medium-scale business growth in Nigeria are lack of financial support, poor management, corruption, lack of training and experience, poor infrastructure, insufficient profits, and low demand for products and services. Hence, it is therefore recommended that Government should, as a matter of urgency, assist prospective entrepreneurs in having access to finance and necessary information relating to business opportunities, modern technology, raw materials, market, plant and machinery, which would enable them to reduce their operating costs and be more efficient to meet the market competitions.