Government Policies and Business Start-Ups in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nduka Elda Vitalis Okolo-Obasi, Emmanuel Ejiofo Nwanmuoh, Maureen Ifeoma Iyke‐Ofoedu, Deborah Patience Okoro, Kobimdi Pamela Ikpo, Chukwuemeka Samuel Ezuke, Ogonna E. OGBU-NWALI, Patrick Okechukwu Emeter
Abstract
The study assessed the impact of government policy and programmes on entrepreneurship development and business startups in Nigeria. we adopted a descriptive research design using quantitative survey. Primary data were generated from a sample of 1152 respondents selected across the six geopolitical zones of the country using multiple sampling techniques. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to answer the three research questions and test the hypotheses of the study. Results from the estimation of a multiple regression analysis to determine the impact of local content initiatives of the government, ease of doing business policies and export promotion programmes of the government show that though significant efforts have been made through the government policies to boost multiplication of startup and enterprise development, only local content initiative has a positive significant impact on entrepreneurship and business startup development in Nigeria. The findings suggest that supporting and enhancing local content initiatives can create a favourable environment for start-up development while not neglecting the addressing of challenges related to the ease of doing business and export promotion in the way they can further facilitate start-up growth. These insights can inform policymakers and stakeholders in devising strategies and policies to foster a vibrant start-up ecosystem in Nigeria, promoting economic growth, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the country.