Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and Sustainable Economic Development in Nigeria Dimoji F. A and Onwuneme L. N Interest in the development of small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) and their contribution in the development process have continued to be in the forefront of policy debates in developing countries. Small and medium scale enterprises remain a veritable tool for achieving sustainable economic development in Nigeria by their role of encouragement of entrepreneurship, creating immediate employment opportunities, promoting inter and intra-regional trade, breaking monopoly of larger enterprises as well as alleviating poverty. In fact the foundation of growth and development in many developed countries of the world is usually attributed to the contribution of the small and medium enterprises. This work therefore assessed the impact of small and medium enterprises in achieving sustainable economic development as well as the challenges facing their optimal performance. Descriptive method of analysis was employed and the major source of information for this study was from secondary method of data collection. Relevant literatures were reviewed accordingly. It was discovered that small and medium scale enterprises provide the necessary tool for a needed sustainable economic liberation in Nigeria. The recommendation among other things are, more financial encouragement and support from the government and relaxation of stringent and conflicting policies, sensitization of the general public on how to access funds set aside for SMEs development, and the need to ensure strict compliance to inclusion of Entrepreneurial studies in our higher institutions in Nigeria. Keywords: sustainable, economic development, small and medium scale enterprises. Track: Economics Introduction Small and Medium Enterprises Development (SMEs) has continued to be a popular phrase in the history of economic development around the world today. As a result, both the developed and the developing countries are actively engaged in and continue to seek pragmatic ways of improving the activities of SMEs. According to the World Bank (2010), micro, small and medium-sized enterprises constitute 99% of an estimated 19.3 million enterprises in the European Union (EU), and provide about 65 million jobs representing two-thirds of all employment. In the context of the developing world, SMEs in Africa constitute the larger proportion of businesses and employ a significant portion of the population, while Ojo (2003) also attributes the economic success of the Asian countries to the activities of SMEs. In Ghana, official statistics indicate that about 70% of enterprises are micro and small sized and that about 40% of Ghana’s Gross National Income is contributed by the private sector which is dominated by SMEs (Ghana Statistical Service, 2012). In Nigeria the SMEs account for the largest group of businesses in terms of number. They generate the largest employment opportunities in the nation, thereby acting as a panacea to the high unemployment rate in the nation. _____________________________________________________ Dimoji F.A & Onwuneme L.N, Department of business administration and management, School of business management and technology, Abia state polytechnic, aba, Email: Favour.Dimoji@Yahoo.Com Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 In fact the foundation of growth and development in many developed countries of the world is usually attributed to the contribution of the small and medium enterprises. The place of small and medium Enterprises (SMEs) in achieving economic development in Nigeria can never be over-emphasized. It is a well known fact that SMEs act as the driving force in the attainment of industrial growth and development. This basically is predicated on their great potential in ensuring diversification and expansion of industrial production as well as the economy at large. Odubanjo (2000), Onwumere (2000), and Nnanna (2001) affirm that SMEs help in the achievement of improved rural infrastructure, improved living standard, utilization of indigenous technology, production of intermediate technology and increase in revenue base of private individuals and government. China that has understudied and realized these facts has aggressively capitalized and invested in her SMEs. Other nations have also joined in this wise venture. The SME sector has moved some Asian countries into world leaders with unprecedented economic and industrial expansion (Kuwait Chapter of Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review Vol. 1, No.9; May 2012) Ahmed (2006) opined that Small and Medium Scale Enterprises are sub-sectors of the industrial sector and they play crucial roles in ensuring industrial development. Nigeria in 1981 adopted economic reform programmes and ever since there have been several decisions to switch from capital intensive and large scale industrial projects, to small and medium scale enterprises that have better prospects for developing domestic economy. Based on this argument, Osuagwu (2009), opined that a panacea to the challenges of development in developing countries particularly in Nigeria, is the encouragement of entrepreneurial development programme at all levels in the nation. Reckoning with an ever enduring, stable economic situation is an untiring desire of every nation under the globe today and this has brought about the word sustainability. A sustainable economy simply speaks of an economy that has the potentials/features to last well into the future. Achievement of economic sustainability takes a collective effort of several interacting forces and elements. Such economic contribution are obvious in the mobilization of idle financial resources, the conservation of foreign exchange, utilization of local raw materials, specialist supplies to large companies, adding varieties and choice for the consumers, checking the monopolistic tendency power, providing a source for innovation, breeding ground for new industries and above all, employment creation (Bamidele, 2012). At some point the government has formulated policies aimed at facilitating, empowering the growth and development and performance of the SMEs, at some other point, it had focused on assisting the SMEs to grow through soft loans and other fiscal incentives in order to enhance the socio-economic development of the economy like alleviating poverty, employment generation, enhancing human development and improving the social welfare of the people (Oreoluwa, 2011). Despite her abundant natural resources, the country still finds it very difficult to discover her developmental bearing since independence. Quality and adequate infrastructural provisions has remained a night-mare, as the real sector among others has witnessed downward performance while unemployment rate is on the increase. Evidently, most of the poor and unemployed Nigerians in order to better their lots have resorted to the establishment of their own businesses with lean personal savings. Consequently, entrepreneurship is fast becoming a household name in Nigeria. This of course is due to the Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 obvious fact that the so called white collar jobs that people clamour for are no longer there. One could notice also that in some sectors such as Banks and companies known to be the largest employer of labour are on the downturn following the consolidation crisis and fraudulent practices 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 led to high cost of production and, undermines profit making potentials of companies in Nigeria. As a result of banking sector practices and continuous folding up of companies, a lot of Nigerians are thrown back into unemployment which inevitably is not favourable to the economic situation of the country. Given the fact that office jobs which people desire more are no longer there for the teeming population, and the few ones that succeeded in getting the jobs are incessantly thrown out as a result of some of the factors identified above, the need for the government and the people to have a rethink on the way forward becomes absolutely necessary. Ipso facto, the need for Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs) has become a necessary and effective means of ensuring self independence, employment creation, import substitution, effective and efficient utilization of raw materials and, contribution to the economic development in Nigeria. Over the years a number of policies have been formulated by the government with a view to developing Small and Medium Scale Enterprises. The Nigerian government under the leadership of Olusegun Obasanjo endorsed the micro-finance policy and other regulatory and supervisory framework in 2005. It was in pursuit of a sustained economy through SMEs that the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) was established. Among the functions of SMEDAN is to ensure adequate encouragement, support and protection of SMEs. This was in sheer recognition of the inevitable roles that SMEs play in achieving economic development and sustainability. CONCEPT OF SMEs According to Obitayo (2001), the concept of small scale enterprises v a r i e s f r o m o n e country to another. He said statistically small scale enterprises were d e f i n e d a s t h o s e e m p l oyi n g 1 0 - 9 9 w o r k e r s . H e n c e , enterprises employing less than ten (10) workers were classified as micro and those employing more than 100 persons were classified as large scale. Anyanwu (2001) believed that each country derives its own definition based on the role small scale enterprises are expected to play in such economy and the programmes designed to achieve such goals T h e C e n t r a l B a n k o f N i g e r i a ( C B N ) i n i t s c r e d i t a n d monetary guidelines, defined small scale enterprises as those whose capital investment does not exceed N5,000,000 (including land and working capital) or whose turnover are not more than N25,000,000 annually. Nigerian Bank for Commerce and Industry (NBIC) defined small scale enterprise as “an establishment whose capital investment does not exceed N500,000 this including building, machines and equipment and working capital but excluded cost of land. S m a l l a n d M e d i u m S c a l e E n t e r p r i s e s a r e g e n e r a l l y r e g a r d e d a s t h e driving force of economic growth, job creation and poverty reduction and a l l e v i a t i o n i n Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 d e v e l o p i n g c o u n t r i e s . T h e y h a v e b e e n t h e m e a n s t h r o u g h which accelerated economic growth and rapid industrialization have been achieved . REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE: In the previous years, both in Nigeria and in overseas, several studies have been carried out to examine the roles, and or contributions of SMEs in the achievement of sustainable economic growth and development. Generally speaking, there seems to be a consensus from most of these studies that SMEs, when adequately funded, contribute adequately to the desired economic growth and development. A review of some of the empirical literatures that support this argument and validates this paper is provided below. Onokoya, Fasanya and Abdulrahman,( 2013) examined the place of small and medium scale Enterprises in sustaining economic growth in Nigeria. The findings showed that SMEs, when adequately funded, contribute meaningfully to economic growth and development. The greatest problem confronting SMEs in Nigeria is not only limited access to capital or finance but also lack of efficient managerial capacity for successful entrepreneurial development. A study carried out by Bamidele (2012), on the pattern of financing of small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State, Nigeria, revealed that not so much has been done by the government and other support agencies in advancing the growth and development of SMEs through loans and credit disbursement. The recommendation therefore is that more loans should be given with an appropriate extension of deadlines for payment, existing SMEs should be encouraged and supported by making policies that are beneficial to SMEs, creating enabling environment for investment, and ensuring effective infrastructural development could be an added boost. Qureshi (2012), from the international angle examined the problems and constraints that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Pakistan face with regards to access to financing. The study found out that one of the biggest problems facing SMEs is formal financing as a substantial portion of SMEs lack the appropriate security required for collateral. Nkwe (2012) discussed the impact of SMEs on the development of countries such as Botswana. The study focused on the contributions of SMEs to the growth of the economy as well as their limiting factors. In the course of the review, the researcher found out that SMEs contribution to the growth and development of the economy of Botswana is enormous. SMEs contribute to economic development in various ways: by creating employment for rural and urban growing labour force and ensuring desirable sustainability and innovation in the economy as a whole. The most desired development priority in Botswana has been to diversify the economy in general, and to diversify production for exports in particular which SMEs have greatly contributed to. Morenikeji and Oluchukwu (2012) did a study on the impact of small and medium scale enterprises in the generation of employment in Lagos state and came up with interesting results. The results show that SMEs and sustainable development of the Nigerian economy are related Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 just in the same way that promotion of SMEs and improvements in employment generation are related. Their conclusion therefore is that for a nation irrespective of its economic ideology to achieve meaningful and sustainable development, adequate and unwavering attention must be given to wide spread economic activities through entrepreneurship and small and medium scale enterprise promotion. THE IMPACT OF SMES DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA. IN ACHIEVING SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC The advantages claimed for SMEs in achieving sustainable economic development in Nigeria are so many. Attempt is made here to list some of them as follows: a) Effective And Efficient Utilization of Local Raw Materials: Scarcity of the resources available demands prudency in their usage to avoid wastages of the few that are available. SMEs have been found to maximize the usage of resources hence, they achieve cost reduction and profit maximization in business activities. b) Stabilization of Economic Activities Available Statistics show that poverty has continued to increase in the country at alarming rates due to increasing unemployment rates in the country. To avert this ugly trend; current wisdom now tends towards the belief that contribution from the small and medium scale enterprises must be energized. With the increased orientation and awareness of the gains of entrepreneurship, majority of our people are engaged in SMEs as a rewarding option open to them for survival. Following this there is therefore no narrow limit to the type and nature of economic activity any one can involve in. This gesture obviously helps in stabilizing economic activity as the expectations of both the individual and the government are met. c) Creation of Employment and Job Opportunities. The development of small and medium scale enterprises is a sin quo non for employment generation, solid entrepreneurial base and encouragement for the use of local raw materials and tecshnology, Hayatu-Deen, (2002) asserted. SMEs create more employment opportunities per unit of investment because of their labour intensive operations and they achieve a much more relative high value added operations because they are propelled by basic economic activities that depend mostly on locally sourced raw materials. One major index used to assess the level of performance and growth of an economy, including the unemployment rate in an economy is the position of the SMEs. SMEs have the priority task of making individuals self-dependent ( selfemployment); and by extension open up a wide horizon of activities which provide jobs for majority of the people. This gives a good footing for the development of entrepreneurial spirit, removes the burden of government employment and also leads to economic liberation to the economy. Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 d) Promotion of Self-Independence By every indication, SME owners and operators are lords of their own. Because people are selfdependent they take no un-supposed orders/directives from nobody, and on their own decide the future of their businesses without waiting for anybody’s instructions. They are confident of themselves and depend on their ingenious and innovative capabilities. e) Alternative to Import Substitution: Almost all our local markets are flooded with all kinds of goods from the SMEs, which ordinarily would have been imported from outside. SMEs are sure surrogates to importation especially on consumables. Economies that have many well encouraged, performing and flourishing SMEs have almost a zero need for imported goods. In fact, the contributions of SMEs in Nigeria indicate great potentials for the emergence of the long sought industrial transformation which has been difficult for the large industries to achieve over the years. f) Conservation of Foreign Exchange: When the nation spends less on importation it automatically encourages local production through the SMEs. This transcends to encouragement for exports. Through this, foreign exchange is earned and conserved for later use. g) Specialist Suppliers to Large Companies: Most large companies who operate within an economy largely depend on materials from SMEs in order to carry-on with their own activities. SMEs provide feeder industry services as they serve as major suppliers of intermediate goods and components to large-scale industries as well as major agents for the distribution of final products of such industries. h) Limitation of Monopoly Power: Our society today is a dynamic one and people have access to varieties of products and right to make choice on products, their perceived quality/content, price, etc. Based on this, the power of monopoly is grossly limited. I) Basic Foundation for new Companies Despite her abundant natural resources, the country still finds it difficult to discover her developmental bearing since independence. Thanks to the SMEs and their profound contributions to economic growth and development. SMEs remain the foundation for the big industries today in Nigeria. Most big companies of today were SMEs of yesterday. The growth and expansion of SMEs into bigger companies is a clear function of the owners or operators. This means, an expansion in the activities of the SMEs, their business operations, product, market coverage, grossly depends on the operator’s ability. j) Encouragement of Innovation for Entrepreneurship Development: SMEs are seedbed of innovation for entrepreneurship development. This means that new things, new ideas, Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 new methods, new processes and new approaches are constantly being adopted and adapted by most SMEs operators in the execution of economic tasks. This breeds the spirit of entrepreneurship. Innovation is an inseparable characteristic of entrepreneurship and development. Igniting the spirit of SME implies a spark-off of innovation, entrepreneurship and sustainable development. More generally, the development of SMEs is seen as accelerating the achievement of wider economic and socio-economic objectives, including poverty alleviation (Cook & Nixon, 2000). Challenges Faced By SMEs In Nigeria The challenges confronting SMEs in Nigeria are centered around the following points associated with their peculiar nature which are as follows: 1) Concentration of management on the owner of the enterprise, making many SMEs very much focused on the person of the owner, where their success and market position depends on the vision and entrepreneurial talent of the owners. 2) Labour-intensive production processes. 3) Limited access to long term funds. 4) High cost of funds as a result of high interest rates and bank charges. 5) High mortality rates, 6) Poor inter and intra-sectoral linkages making it difficult for them to enjoy economies of scale benefits. 7) Poor managerial skills due to inability to pay for skilled labour. 8) Poor product quality output. 9) Absence of Research and Development application. 10) Little or no training and development for SMEs’ staff. 11) Poor documentations of policy, strategy, financial and operational plans. Others are: 12) Low entrepreneurial skills and inadequate educational background for the SMEs owners. 13) Lack of adequate financial record keeping. 14) Poor capital base. 15) Inability to distinguish between personal and business finance. 16) High cost of production due to poor and inadequate infrastructure. 17) Use of outdated and inefficient technology with regards to processing, preservation and storage. 18) Lack of access to international market. 19) Lack of future succession plan and poor access to useful and current information. The relatively small size of SMEs often leads to disadvantages of their economies of scale. Ekpenyong (1997) and Utomi (1997) identified inadequate capital and inaccessible credit facilities as challenges facing SMEs. Indeed, there is dearth of long term loans for adequate financing of SMEs. This discouraging and unpleasant scenario has continued over time definitely because many financial institutions are not satisfied with the credibility and viability of SMEs and therefore consider it a high risk to extend credit facility to them. Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 Evobuomwam, Ikpi, Okoruwa, and Akinyosoye, (2012) also identified poor power supply and inadequate infrastructure as challenges facing the SMEs. This is true because no business including SMEs can efficiently and profitably operate in the absence of relevant infrastructure. Again, government attention, commitment and support for S MEs in Nigeria have been irregular, unstable and unpredictable, as well as its stringent and conflicting regulations. This is without doubt a serious setback to the optimal performance of the SMEs. The following have been identified by Onugu (2005) as barriers to SMEs: lack of effective investment and technology promotion policies, inappropriate legal and regulatory frameworks, inadequate capabilities of investment promotion and technology support institutions, lack of access to potential investors and sources of new technology, limited technical and managerial skills, difficulty in obtaining financial assistance, and insufficient knowledge about laws and regulations. CONCLUSION, SMEs remain major contributors to sustainable economic development in Nigeria. Business in Nigeria has been classified as small, medium and large. In both the developed and developing countries, the government is turning to small and medium scale industries, as a means of economic development and a veritable means of solving problems. It is a seedbed of innovations, inventions and employment. The place and role of SMEs in our national development cannot be under-rated. They are instrumental to a lot that has happened positively in our economic annals and as such, needs to be given prioritized attention by the government and all concerned. For the SMEs to succeed, Lukas (2005) has pointed out that all concerned must be effectively involved. SMEs are pillars to the government diversification drive and therefore should be given adequate attention by all if the needed economic liberation in Nigeria would be actualized. RECOMMENDATION In view of the fact that SMEs are major contributors to sustainable economic development, the following recommendations are made: The government should strengthen all its institutions and agencies charged with issues and responsibilities of establishing, encouraging and supporting the operations and growth of SMEs in Nigeria. Adequate and coordinated financing with relatively low interest rate should be made available and accessible to SMEs across Nigeria, as paucity of funds has remained the major challenge to their successful operations. Proceedings of 33rd International Business Research Conference 4 - 5 January 2016, Flora Grand Hotel, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-94-8 The government should make available the needed infrastructure and incentives such as regular power supply, good roads, tax holidays as a way of enhancing and encouraging them. The government should Endeavour to relax the stringent and conflicting policies to enable the SMEs operators operate with less hurdles. There should be a sensitization of the general public on how to access funds set aside for SMEs development, and there is need to ensure strict compliance to inclusion of Entrepreneurial studies in our higher institutions in Nigeria. Since SMEs source their initial business capital form the informal financial sources which they believe are largely inadequate, there is the urgent need for the government to integrate the operations of the formal financial institutions with that of the informal financial agents so as to broaden the credit base of the latter institutions. The banks should rely on the informal agents for loan repayment by the SMEs since they have inbuilt mechanism to ensure full repayment of loans as at the due date. As a matter of urgency, there is the need to establish formal financial institutions just like the Bank of Industry (BOI) with the mandate of providing financial support specifically to the SMEs. The Bank if established should provide loans and other financial support at the barest minimum interest rate. This is purposive so as to encourage the SMEs to patronize these institutions. The current effort of the government in fighting corruption needs be re-examined and strategized. 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