The programming committee for the 77th Annual SAM International Business Conference is pleased to announce the acceptance of the presentation Export Barriers For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises In Nigeria: An Exploratory Study, authored by John Okpara and Weichu Zhu from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania.
Presentation Abstract: Internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has remained a topic of considerable contemporary relevance, mainly due to the observed growth effects of cross-border venturing, and the demonstrated capacity of SMEs to drive economic development at national, regional, and global levels. SMEs represent a large proportion of enterprises in most economies and are a driving force for economic growth. Evidence from previous studies have shown that internationalization is the path forward for SMEs long term survival and profitability.
It has also been widely accepted that internationalization through exports make significant contributions to economic development and well-being of a nation. Exports facilitate international trade and stimulate domestic economic activity. The benefits of SME’s to an economy include: creation of jobs at a relatively low capital cost, provision of a vehicle for reducing income inequalities; development of skilled and semi-skilled workers for future industrial expansion which offer an excellent breeding ground for entrepreneurial and managerial talents, the critical shortage of which is often a barrier to economic development.
In spite, of real and potential benefits of exports, most SMEs from developing countries refrain from exporting because of the many barriers they face. Some of these barriers are identified to exist within the firm (internal) and some are attributed to the external factors. Based on this premise, this study aims to examine perceived factors impeding the development of export activities in Nigeria.
Data were collected from 112 Nigerian-based manufacturing firms through a self-administered questionnaire. Our preliminary findings show that the major barriers to export development include lack of finance to support export activities, lack of qualified personnel to support export planning, foreign competition, lack of knowledge on how to export, poor infrastructure, corruption and bureaucratic bottlenecks. Implications of the findings will be discussed.
Join us online to see this great paper and many more March 31 – April 2, 2022. For registration information visit www.samnational.org/conference.