ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPORTUNITIES FOR OFFICE TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT GRADUATE: A PANACEA FOR UNEMPLOYMENT

ENTREPRENEURSHIP OPPORTUNITIES FOR OFFICE TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT GRADUATE: A PANACEA FOR UNEMPLOYMENT

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BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

It has been said that Nigeria is the most populous nation in Africa with a population of over 160 million people according to the census in 2006. Additionally, Nigeria's economy is the fourth biggest on the African continent. According to the National Planning Commission, more than sixty percent of the country's population lives below the poverty line, which means that they survive on less than one dollar in current U.S. currency per day. This is despite the fact that Nigeria has one of the world's largest oil reserves (NPC, 2004). In spite of the fact that the nation ships out significant volumes of crude oil on a daily basis, this status remained unchanged (Terdoo, 2014). The fact that a significant portion of Nigeria's population is comprised of subsistence farmers, minor merchants, and public workers (some of whom are working below their capacity), as well as others who are not working at all, is at the root of the country's employment crisis. The number of unemployed people in the country was estimated to be around 3 million in 2004 (NBS, 2004); however, universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, and monotechnics continue to churn out graduates each year into an unemployment market that is already saturated due to their inability to start up their own businesses. This scenario has arisen as a result of the many obstacles that graduates, particularly OTM graduates, must overcome in order to realize their career goals and advance their entrepreneurial endeavors.

Concerned about the high rate of graduate unemployment, which is estimated to be 1.8 million annually, Esene (2014) reported that the Presidency had in 2006 issued a directive to all higher educational institutions in Nigeria to include on its curriculum of studies, Entrepreneurship Development Education (EDE) as a compulsory course for all students regardless of the students' areas of discipline. Esene (2014) also reported that the Presidency had in 2006 issued a directive to all higher educational institutions in Nigeria to include on its curriculum of studies, Entrepreneurship This guideline is now being followed across the board at all of Nigeria's academic institutions.

It is widely acknowledged that the introduction of Entrepreneurship Development Education (EDE) is one of the positive measures that have been made in the correct path. It is important to note that the provision for entrepreneurship education that was included in the introduction of basic education in Nigeria (FRN,2012) is also included in the secondary and tertiary education curriculums. This is something that should be taken into consideration. According to Osuala (2004), EDE is a programme that prepares individuals and students to undertake the formation of and/or operation of small business enterprises, which also includes franchise operations. This is done for the purpose of performing all business functions relating to a product or service, with an emphasis given to the social responsibilities, legal requirements, and risks for the sake of profit making in the conduct of a private enterprise. This indicates that learners participating in an entrepreneurship programme are prepared or equipped with the skills that make them not only competent, but also eager to begin and operate a small business of any sort with the sole objective of generating a profit. This is something that they are able to do because they have the skills that have been gained through time and are necessary for the work at hand. These kinds of business endeavors might be in the field of either product or service ecommerce.

According to Nwangwu (2006), the definition of entrepreneurship is "the willingness and the ability of an individual or firm to identify an environmental change and exploit such an opportunity to produce goods and services for public consumption." This definition can be applied to both individuals and businesses. Entrepreneurship refers to the collection of skills and qualities that enable a person to discover undiscovered commercial opportunities, as well as the capacity to organize necessary resources in order to take advantage of those opportunities in a profitable business despite the presence of some degree of risk and uncertainty (Essien, 2006). The caliber of a nation's inhabitants is directly proportional to that country's level of economic development and overall advancement. The society will advance rapidly if the people in it have an innovative spirit, are ambitious, and are brave enough to take the risk. Osemeke (2012) defines entrepreneurship development as the process of increasing entrepreneurial skills and knowledge via organized training and institution-building programs. Individuals whose character exemplifies entrepreneurship are considered to be entrepreneurs. The goal of programs designed to foster entrepreneurial development is to broaden the pool of potential entrepreneurship owners in order to quicken the rate at which new entrepreneurs are formed. The creation of new jobs and overall economic development are both sped up as a result of this. The person who is interested in beginning a new business or growing an existing one is the primary target of entrepreneurial development. In addition, the development of entrepreneurship in Nigeria places a greater emphasis on innovative potential and growth potential. The development of skills that will allow an entrepreneur to operate effectively and sufficiently in terms of converting perceived problems into opportunities is the essence of what this phrase refers to here.

Only when the people of a country engage in entrepreneurial activity will that country be able to provide a consistent flow of possibilities for business owners to pursue. Strong economies are often the result of successful business ventures. They are a crucial component in the expansion of a nation's industrial sector and overall development. According to Harper (2003), the primary process that generates wealth is entrepreneurship; nonetheless, theories of economic growth and development often disregard (or fail to clearly recognize) the entrepreneurial dynamics of change and adaptation that underpin economic performance. Due to the multiple hurdles that are faced by graduates of Office Technology and Management (OTM) in Nigeria, entrepreneurship development in the office management career has not been particularly successful so far. This is one of the reasons why OTM graduates face such difficulties.

1.2     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The country of Nigeria is naturally endowed with prospects for entrepreneurship ownership, but the country has not been able to take use of these opportunities to their full potential because of a number of obstacles (Ebiringa, 2012). It is however troubling that despite the availability of technology and the government's contributions towards the development of entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship in Nigeria has not performed creditably well. As a result, the vital and vibrant role that OTM graduate entrepreneurs should play in the economic growth and development of Nigeria has been constrained by challenges such as difficulties in accessing funds to start up their own businesses, a lack of knowledge of the business environment, and a lack of awareness of the burgeoning opportunities available to them. Graduates of OTM are provided with the information and skills essential to entrepreneurship upon completion of their courses. This enables them to pursue their career goals and become successful business entrepreneurs. Nevertheless, OTM graduates in Nigeria are confronted with a mountain of problems that impede their ability to expand their businesses and their careers. As a result, the purpose of this research is to investigate the potential for entrepreneurship ownership among graduates of office technology and management programs; in other words, a solution to the problem of unemployment.

1.3     PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The main purpose of this study is to assess entrepreneurship opportunities for office technology and management graduate: a panacea for unemployment. The study has the following specific objectives.

1. To determine whether entrepreneurship education enhances acquisition of the necessary skills for gainful self-employment in Nigeria
2. To ascertain the entrepreneurship opportunities in the OTM programme.
3. To investigate the extent to which Entrepreneurship  Education (EDE) has exposed  OTM graduates to entrepreneurship opportunities
4. To ascertain factors limiting OTM graduate from utilizing  entrepreneurship opportunities

1.4     Research Questions

The following research questions are raised in line with the objectives of the study.

1. Does  entrepreneurship education enhance acquisition of the necessary skills for gainful self-employment in Nigeria?
2. What are the entrepreneurship opportunities in the OTM programme?
3. What is the extent to which Entrepreneurship  Education (EDE) has exposed  OTM graduates to entrepreneurship opportunities?
4. What are factors limiting OTM graduate from utilizing  entrepreneurship opportunities?

1.5     Research Hypotheses

The study will geared towards testing the following hypotheses

H0: There are no entrepreneurship opportunities available for OTM students.

Ha: There are entrepreneurship opportunities available for OTM students.

1.6     Significance Of The Study

The research will give useful information on the relevance of entrepreneurship development to stakeholders in the education subsector, which will motivate them to put into place policies and initiatives that will boost entrepreneurship development education in schools.

Second, it will give the government with relevant information, which in turn would encourage the government to put into place policies that will support and strengthen the development of graduate entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Thirdly, the study will provide pertinent information that will enhance collaboration between private institutions and the government in order to fashion out an effective way of providing an enabling environment for the growth of entrepreneurship among graduates in Nigeria. This is the final benefit that will be derived from the research. In conclusion, this research will provide new information to the existing body of literature about career structures and work satisfaction. In a purely empirical sense, the study will contribute to the overall body of knowledge and serve as a reference material for students and academics who seek to do future research in an area that is relevant to the one being examined here.

1.7     Scope Of The Study

This study is aimed at investigating entrepreneurship opportunities for office technology and management graduate: a panacea for unemployment.  Therefore, the study area covers OTM students in Kaduna Polytechnic.

1.8    Limitation Of The Study

his research project, like all human endeavors, had some challenges that threatened to derail the study's completion. One of the reasons is that the time allotted for this work was so limited that the researcher did not have enough time to complete the task thoroughly. During data collection, the researcher also had to put forth extra effort to understand the respondents' interview schedules, several of whom fell into the incomprehensible age group. Also, there were financial and transportation constraints to deal with. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire, interview).

1.9     Definition Of Terms

Entrepreneurship:

This is the phenomenon of creating a new business fermenting and managing it taking risk and making losses or profit.

Venture Capital:

This refers to loans for business.

Starting Capital:

This refers to funds required to set up a business.

Business Opportunity:

This refers to profitable business activity that can be under taken.

1.10 Organisations of the Study

The study is categorized into five chapters. The first chapter presents the background of the study, statement of the problem, objective of the study, research questions and hypothesis, the significance of the study, scope/limitations of the study, and definition of terms. The chapter two covers the  review of literature with emphasis on conceptual framework, theoretical framework, and empirical review. Likewise, the chapter three which is the research methodology, specifically covers the research design, population of the study,  sample size determination,  sample size, abnd selection technique and procedure, research instrument and administration, method of data collection, method of data analysis, validity and reliability of the study, and ethical consideration. The second to last chapter being the chapter four presents the data presentation and analysis, while the last chapter(chapter five) contains the summary, conclusion and recommendation.

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