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African Entrepreneurship pp 189–221Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Entrepreneurship and SMEs’ Productivity Challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa

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Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies of Entrepreneurship in Africa ((PSEA))

Abstract

In Sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of businesses operate in the form of a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME). SMEs play a significant role in the economic development of many nations. This chapter considers the business environment and entrepreneurship activities in the Sub-Saharan countries of Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, South Sudan and Tanzania. The review of literature explores issues such as doing business in Africa, size and informality, start-up survival and closure, the determinants of growth and gender issues in African entrepreneurship. Using data from the World Bank Enterprise Surveys, it reflects on the factors affecting investment and productivity in Africa as follows: education of the labour force, access to infrastructure, access to finance, size of firms and other business climate variables. Finally, using data from the aforementioned survey, this chapter draws pertinent conclusions on the business environment of the region in focus.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Strategy and Enterprise, Lincoln International Business School, University of Lincoln, Lincoln, UK

    Paul Agu Igwe

  2. Department of Entrepreneurship, Coventry University, Coventry, UK

    Adah Emmanuel Onjewu

  3. Department of Agribusiness Marketing, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Nigeria

    Simon Uguru Nwibo

Authors
  1. Paul Agu Igwe
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  2. Adah Emmanuel Onjewu
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  3. Simon Uguru Nwibo
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. GSCM Montpellier Business School, Montpellier, France

    Leo-Paul Dana

  2. Department of Management and Marketing, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Vanessa Ratten

  3. Department of Management Sciences, Ho Technical University, Ho, Ghana

    Ben Q. Honyenuga

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Igwe, P.A., Onjewu, A.E., Nwibo, S.U. (2018). Entrepreneurship and SMEs’ Productivity Challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa. In: Dana, LP., Ratten, V., Honyenuga, B. (eds) African Entrepreneurship. Palgrave Studies of Entrepreneurship in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73700-3_9

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