ADEQUATE ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT: A PANACEA FOR SELF-RELIANCE

,


INTRODUCTION
The quest for self-reliance of individual and or nation is not a new concept in the economic history of any nations. The same can be said to be true for Nigeria. The Nigerian struggle for emancipation from the colonial administration in the 50's was a demonstration in this regard.
Nigeria as a nation soon came to realize after independence in 1960, that mere political independence was not enough, unless it is matched with enough economic independence. The concept of self-reliance is well ingrained in economic independence, whether at the level of the individual or nation.
It was the recognition of this very important need for economic independence and to reinforce the spirit of self-reliance that gave rise to the famous Arusha Declaration of February 1967 in which the former Tanzanian president, Julius Nyerere urged African leaders to strive to match economic independence with political independence. It is by doing this, that politically independence countries can justify their sovereign status. One can imagine how disappointed the former Tanzanian president has been, considering how many African countries have painfully remained enslaved economically after decades of political independence.
The Nigerian Enterprises Promotion Decree in the early 70s and the indigenization decree of 1977 were a demonstration by the Federal Government to make the country and the people self-reliant. The exercise of indigenization was in keeping with Nigerian's aim of development, which was highlighted by Adaka (2002) to include: i. A just and egalitarian economy ii.
A land of bright and full opportunities for all citizens and iii.
A free and democratic society The concept of self-reliance has been accepted in meaning and purpose as demonstrated by successive governments in Nigeria. In fact, the principles of self-reliance have been made an integral part of Nigeria's national development policies and strategies as shown in the national development policies and strategies have relied on the promotion of structural changes in order to reduce exclusive dependence on external factors of transformation. This will now encourage Nigerians to make use of their own resources, accumulated their capital and operate their own economies with the view to achieving accelerated growth in the economy and equitable income spread.
The structural adjustment programme (SAP), the directorate of food, roads and rural infrastructures (DFFRI), school to land programme in river state, better life for rural women, family support programme (FSP), national directorate of employment (NDE), family economic advancement programme (FEAP) and poverty eradication programme introduced at one time or the other by state and federal government were practical demonstrations of government policies and strategies for self-reliance.

Concept of Self-Reliance
Self-reliance has attracted many definitions from various scholars in line with their perception of the subject matter. Self-reliance may be defined as process of making people masters in their own house. It is the ability to achieve self-sustenance economically without having to "go cup in hand" at the slightest crisis. Onaleme (2010) in Agbogeda (2008) has argued that a correct interpretation of self-reliance is the one supported by appropriate policies. In his opinion, to equate self-reliance with capitalist individualism of elite nationalism was wrong, but that self-reliance must be broad based. According to him, it may not be necessary to close one's borders to the outside world as demonstration of self-reliance. It is just possible to achieve self-reliance through a dynamic interdependence among nations.
One other very important principle of self-reliance is the organizational aspect, which has to do with the machinery for coordinating, producing, distributing and defending vital interest of the nation, (Agbogede, 2008). It has been observed that the problem, for example, with food self-sufficiency may not necessarily emanate from inadequate production, but from distributional bottlenecks. This particular aspect calls for entrepreneurial education and training.
A viable self-reliance strategy according to Onaleme (2010) is heavily anchored on a well-articulated national ideology or development model. It requires collective solidarity to enable us to become intellectually liberated from 'inherited' colonial mentality of discounting our worth in whatever we produce.
Nigerians typically, have great respect for foreign contractors, and foreign goods than those emanating from Nigeria. As Olofin (1981); Onaleme (2010) in Agbogede (2010) rightly observed that, consultancy firms as well as economic models and methodology emanating outside the country are more respected than those fashioned in Nigeria. Indeed, this slave mentality has led to a situation where suggestions by Nigerians that do not rhyme with those from London, Paris or Washington are sometimes viewed with skepticism or out rightly whose need for self-reliance cannot be over stated. The saying that nothing good comes easy is germane here. As many people desire to go into business of their own, it is necessary to consider some problems or likely problems the entrepreneurs may face during the course of their career.

Challenges of Entrepreneurship Venture in Nigeria
This study consider it expedient to highlight the under mentioned problems so that those who may be concerned should become aware of them. This will help them to guard against such problems or know how to respond to them when they occur. Some of the likely problems and challenges include: i. Capital limitation: capital has been singled out as one of the limiting factors in entrepreneurship pursuit in Nigeria. Young entrepreneurs require financial resources to start something. They especially require start-i[ capital which is usually difficult to come by. Although we may say that there are special banks, financial institutions and bodies whose responsibilities are to grant soft loans to young entrepreneurs, graduates and school leavers, this group may be constrained by the bank's lending conditions. ii.
Lack of experience. Many young graduates and school leavers invariably lack experience in business. They are therefore frequently victims of what lack of experience would present, such as prudence, precaution and good judgement. iii.
Poor record keeping. One of the quickest ways to fail in business is to ignore keeping any form of financial records. Closely related to poor or no recording keeping is inability to separate personal financial records and account from business records. Keeping records allows one to know how the business is doing or otherwise. iv.
Extended family system and societal demands. The young entrepreneurs especially, have to be psychologically prepared for pressures and demands from members of the extended family and the expectations of the community. Such expectations and demands have far reaching effects on the success of the entrepreneur. The list of problems and challenges is endless, but entrepreneurs can overcome or at least minimize them through experience and education, which is the suggestion, and better still, a prescription of this paper.

Opportunies of Entreprenuership Venture in Nigeria
Nigerian is blessed with a variety of resources, including agricultural, forestry, mineral and environmental. A wide range of products and services can come out of these resources. One of the characteristics of a successful entrepreneur is ability to identify and take advantage of opportunities.
Beside the presence and availability of resources, governments have also continued to provide enabling environment to encourage and support entrepreneurial pursuit in Nigeria. As for back as 1956, Government has started providing loans to entrepreneurs through the Federal Loans Board and also subsidized rentals at the Yaba Industrial Estate. Early in the 1970s, the Federal Government has established some development banks (Bank for commerce and industry, Nigerian Industrial Development Bank and Agricultural Development Bank) to provide loans and assistance to entrepreneurs. Recent and current government reform programmes such on the family economic advancement programme (FEAP) Poverty Alleviation Programme and deregulation were and are intended to challenge and provide some sort of assistance to entrepreneurs, graduates and school leavers. Other categories of beneficiaries include disabled persons and beggars whose self-reliance status will go a long way in solving some social problems often associated with this group of people.

Entrepreneurship Education
Education for entrepreneurship should start early in life during the student's formative years in primary and secondary schools. It should also be extended to activities in the home and in the community (Namuche, 2000). Entrepreneurial motivation should be integrated throughout one's formal and informal education and training. This will encourage young people to develop their entrepreneurial talents early in life.
Awareness of self-employment opportunities should be included in our secondary school curriculum. This will be further developed to include how to manage small business accounting and marketing at the post-secondary levels. The post-secondary programmes would expose students to skills, personal characteristics and knowledge required to successfully management a small business, as are being done in our universities and polytechnics.
Apart from creating awareness through the formal school system as mentioned above, many more people can be reached through workshops at the federal, state, local government and ward levels. Such workshops may start with "train the trainers' who would then pass down information, knowledge through the levels. Trainers are expected to employ teaching and learning aids that will facilitate learning for potential entrepreneurs during such training sessions. In additional, National Youth Service (NYSC) orientation camps provide opportunities for graduating corpers to be imparted the requisite entrepreneurship knowledge and skill by experts in various fields of endeavor. The services of consultants and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will be most valuable in this regard.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
In conclusion, the challenges of indigenization and the need for economic self-reliance have made entrepreneurship management education very imperative. It can be accomplished through formal and informal training programmes, and through the use of consultancy services and non-governmental organizations. Apart from creating awareness through the formal school system as mentioned above, many more people can be reached through workshops at the federal, state, local government and ward levels. Such workshops may start with "train the educators" who would then pass down information, knowledge and skill as may be necessary and required through the levels. Trainers are expected to employ teaching and learning aids that will facilitate learning to potential entrepreneurs during such training programme sessions.