Entrepreneurship Development In Cameroon: An Analysis of The Characteristics of Cameroonian Entrepreneurs (Published)

The main objective of this study is to describe the characteristics of Cameroonian entrepreneurs. Using a descriptive research design, the study collected 150 questionnaires through the purposive and referral (snowball) sampling techniques. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse and present collected data. The result of the study reveals that most Cameroonian entrepreneurs are dominantly Optimistic in nature and have a fighting spirit to see that their ventures survive and grow in the midst of the many challenges that surround them such as disturbance from local council agents and taxation agents, high taxes, inflation, the socio-political crisis, unsafety, power outages, lack of subventions, bad roads. They are also hardworking, generous, trustworthy, gentlemanly, sceptical, ambitious, risk bearers, confident, customer service providers, determined, discrete, dynamic, focused, goal getters, innovative, motivated, profit conscious, realistic, self-confident, strategic, time conscious, visionary. It can also be concluded that the majority of entrepreneurs in Cameroon are below forty-two (42) years, they are mostly male, married, have at least a Bachelor degree, schooled in government schools, are not very bold about their political affiliations and are not very inclined to the practice of their traditions.

Keywords: Competencies, Entrepreneur, Growth, characteristics of entrepreneurs, small businesses

Entrepreneur Perception and Growth of Beekeeping in Abia State, Nigeria (Published)

The study adopted survey method with a target population of 4963 entrepreneur-farmers. The sample size of 370 was determined using Yamane (1967) formula (Eboh, 2009).Applying Bowley’s proportional allocation statistical technique, the sample size for each category of respondents was estimated. The systematic linear random sampling technique was applied to select the 370 respondents. Primary and secondary sources of data were accessed. The primary data were collected through the researcher’s self-designed questionnaire titled “Entrepreneur Self-Assessment Questionnaire(ESAQ)”.In the questionnaire, the  five point Likert Scale was used to measure the agreeableness of the entrepreneurs on the subject, where Strongly Agree(SA),Agree(A),Neutral(N), Disagree(D),Strongly Disagree(SD) denote the values, 5,4,3,2,1 respectively. In-depth interviews were held with entrepreneur-farmers. Pilot survey was conducted. The instrument was validated by experts’ opinions. Using Cronbach’s Alpha technique, the reliability coefficient of 0.988 was determined, reflecting high degree of internal consistency of the research instrument. One hypothesis and a research question guided the study. At 0.05 level of significance and 15 degrees of freedom, the hypothesis was tested using one way ANOVA technique and Minitab software package. The study revealed that the extent of entrepreneur perception at 89.40 percent had significant positive effects on the growth of beekeeping in Abia State of Nigeria. Recommendations were made

Keywords: Bee products, Beekeeping, Bees, Entrepreneur, Perception, Venom and Toxin

Influence of Entrepreneurial Networking on Small Enterprise Success: A Service Industry Perspective (Published)

The increasing use of networks for Small and Micro Enterprise has been reported as a factor of influents in development process of entrepreneurial activity. In Kenya Small and Micro enterprises account for over 70% of the enterprises. They are a source of livelihood of low income earners and also a major source of innovation in creating new products technologies and services.  Entrepreneurial networking includes the linkages and connectivity through which entrepreneurs obtain information resources, knowledge and social support about market opportunities. While network relationships have been recognized as indispensable for SMEs to the achievement of growth, a particular focus on entrepreneurial networks in the service industry has been limited. The main objective of the study was to examine the influence of firm’s entrepreneurial networking and its influence on the success of Small and Micro enterprises in Eldoret Town in Uasin Gishu County. The study utilized exploratory survey design. Specific objectives were: to examine the relationship between entrepreneurial networks and enterprise success, and to determine the relationship between entrepreneurial ties and enterprise success. Small and Micro business owners in the service industry were divided into a sample and a simple random technique was employed whereas sample of 240 SMEs in the service was drawn from a target population of 600 registered SMEs in the service sector, Eldoret Town, Uasin Gishu County. The study was guided by Relational Theory of Social Networks.  Data was sorted coded and analyzed using inferential statistics as: Pearson’s product moment correlation, Chi-Square methods and Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multiple regressions. The study found out that, there was a strong positive relationship between networking [r=.683] and ties [r=.559] on entrepreneurial success. This indicated that an increase in networks and ties will lead to greator entrepreneurial success. It is hoped that the results of this study will assist to sharpen entrepreneurs’ skills and policy formulation and development of entrepreneurial networking.

Keywords: Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurial Networks, Micro business, Networking, Service Industry, Small Business, Social Capital and Resources.