Brief Introduction
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as defined by the National Council of Industries refer to business enterprises whose total costs excluding land is not more than two hundred million naira (N200,000,000.00)only. It has been argued that SMEs are effective instruments for economic growth and development in Developed and Less Developed Countries (Beyene, 2002; Nitani, 2005).
This is because SMEs contribute significantly to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and produce substantial amounts of locally consumed products (ECA, 2000; Wattanapruttipaisan, 2003; Tagoe et al, 2005; Saleh and Ndubisi, 2006). According to Mojmir (2000), SMEs play an important role in the economic growth of any country including industrialized countries because they account for more than half of a country’s output and employment (Hussain et al, 2008).
In the same vein, Udechukwu (2003) asserts that the development of SMEs is an essential element in the growth strategy of most economies, which holds particular significance for developing countries like Nigeria. SMEs are a vital part of any market economy because they are represented in all major branches of the manufacturing and service sectors (Obokoh, 2008c). This is in addition to their role in job creation for the unemployed, provision of goods and services within and across national boundaries of countries (Saleh and Ndubisi 2006; Woldie et al, 2008).
Table of Contents
Title Page ———————————————————————– i
Declaration ——————————————————————— ii
Certification ——————————————————————– iii
Dedication ———————————————————————- iv
Acknowledgment ————————————————————- v
Abstract ————————————————————————- vi
Table of Content ————————————————————— vii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study ———————————————- 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem———————————————- 3
1.3 Objectives of the Research ——————————————– 4
1.4 Research Questions —————————————————- 4
1.5 Research Hypothesis ————————————————— 5
1.6 Significance of the Study ———————————————- 5
1.7 Scope of the Study —————————————————– 5
1.8 Definition of Terms/Acronyms—————————————– 6
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction————————————————————- 9
2.2 The Concept of SMEs————————————————– 9
2.3 Role of the SMEs Sub-Sector in the Economy———————– 12
2.4 Significance of the SMEs Sub-Sector in the Nigerian Economy—- 14
2.5 Characteristics of SMEs in Nigeria———————————— 16
2.6 Prospects of SMEs in Nigeria—————————————— 17
2.7 Problems and Challenges of SMEs in Nigeria———————— 20
2.8 The Importance of SMEs access to Finance for Nigeria‟s—– Devt24
2.9 The State of Microfinance in Nigeria———————————- 25
2.10 The State of SMES Finance in Nigeria——————————– 26
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction ———————————————————— 31
3.2 Research Design ——————————————————- 31
3.3 Population of the Study———————————————— 32
3.4 Sample Size and Sampling Technique——————————– 33
3.5 Sources of Data Collection——————————————— 33
3.6 Method of Data Analysis ———————————————- 35
3.7 Justification of Method Used —————————————– 36
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA PRESENTATION, AND ANALYSIS
4.1 Introduction ———————————————————— 37
4.2 Data Presentation and Analysis ————————————— 37
4.3 Testing of Hypothesis ————————————————– 48
4.4 Summary of Findings ————————————————– 57
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Summary—————————————————————- 59
5.2 Conclusion ————————————————————– 63
5.3 Recommendations——————————————————- 67
References—————————————————————- 69
Appendix I————————————————————— 77
