Abstract:
This study was designed to determine the contributions of small scale entrepreneurs in private sector development in Enugu State. It was conducted in Enugu State of Nigeria. The population for the study comprised 316 small scale entrepreneurs who registered their businesses with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Enugu State. Due to the manageable size of the population, there was no sampling. The entire population was studied. Descriptive survey research design was employed for the study. A structured questionnaire made up of two sections and face-validated by two experts in the Department of Vocational Teacher Education, and one expert in the Department of Economics, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, was used for the study. Section “A” sought the demographic data of the respondents. Section “B” consisted of 65 structured items in six clusters, addressing the six specific purposes and research questions. The response options were scaled using real number limits as follows; very great extent (4.50-5.00); large extent (3.50-4.49); undecided (2.50-3.49); little extent (1.50-2.49); least extent (1.00-1.49). The internal consistency reliability of the instrument was established using Cronbach Alpha procedure. The values obtained for the various clusters were 0.86, 0.85, 0.84, 0.84, 0.86, and 0.85. Data for research questions 1-6 were presented using frequency counts and the mean. Two null hypotheses were tested using t-test while one was tested using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), all at 0.05 level of significance. The study found out that small scale entrepreneurs bring about private sector development in Enugu State by: providing opportunities for skill acquisition; stimulating income generation and redistribution activities; and revitalizing the economy of the state. The study recommended that private sector economy should be more emphasized in the curriculum of Business Education. The small scale entrepreneurs should also make concerted efforts to enhance their performances as entrepreneurs.
