Power supply and entrepreneurial development in rural Nigeria: Implications for sustainable transformation

Abstract

Within the Nigerian context, it is worrisome to notice the way people make derogatory comments about Power Holdings Company of Nigeria (PHCN), formerly NEPA. This is due to the unabated epileptic power (electric) delivery, which is seen as one of the major problems facing the Nigerian economy. For the past decades, successive governments in Nigeria have made serious attempts to address the issues of power (electric) supply. Several studies have been conducted on power supply, without any serious attention on the relationship between power supply and entrepreneurial development especially in Nigerian rural communities. This study therefore examined the problem of power supply and its effects on apprenticeship. Through a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods, the study examined the problems encountered by rural entrepreneurs due to epileptic power supply and the coping strategies they adopted. The study also established that apart from the serious devastating effect on SMEs in rural communities, power supply has seriously affected apprenticeship. The study concludes that the government must invest more in electricity power generation and ensure that the SMEs in rural areas are given a higher priority in the supply of electricity if the goal of sustainable transformation is to be achieved.