Title page iApproval page ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement ivAbstract v
Table of Contents viCHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study 1
Statement of the Problem 3
Objectives of the Study 5
Research Questions 6
Hypotheses of the Study 6
Significance of the Study 7
Scope of the Study 8
Definition of Terms 8
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
The performance and effectiveness of small and medium scale enterprises as an instrument of economic growth and development in Nigeria has long been under scrutiny. This intense scrutiny has been against the backdrop of the low performance and inefficiency that characterized small and medium scale enterprises particularly in assessing its role on economic growth and development. Despite government institutional and policies support to enhancing the capacity of small and medium scale enterprises, SMEs has fallen short of expectations. This has generated serious concern and skeptism on whether SME can bring about economic growth and national developments in Nigeria. The concern is even more disturbing when comparing SME in Nigeria with other countries particularly where SME has become harbinger of economic reconstruction and transformation (Ihua, 2009). In the case of Nigeria, SMEs have performed at very abysmal level. This low performance has further exacerbated poverty, hunger, unemployment and low standard of living of people in a country whose economics is ailing.
Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) have been acknowledged to have huge potential for sustainable development. Yet in Nigeria, the SMEs have stagnated and remain relatively small in terms of its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Different people, organizations and operators have advanced various reasons as to why SMEs have not been able to live up to their billing.
The Association of Nigeria Development Finance Institutions (ANDFI) in