PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS OF SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISES IN KADUNA STATE

Abstract The research work was designed to assess the problems and prospects of small-scale enterprises in Kaduna state. The statement of the problem includes Roles of small and medium enterprises towards socio-economic development of the nation, factors affecting the management of small and medium enterprises in Nigeria, problem of inadequate capital and raising capital for small and medium enterprises in Nigeria, Measures taken by government and professionals in tackling the problems affecting the management of small and medium enterprises in Nigeria. The general objective of the study is to assess the problems and prospects of small and medium enterprises in Nigeria. The researcher adopted descriptive research design. The researcher uses this method because it identifies the various characteristics of a problem under study and does not deal with the testing of hypothesis. The sample size of the research work is 50. The data collected from the respondent was analyzed by means of simple statistics for bio-data and simple mean statistics for analysis of the research questions. The results of the findings of the research work indicated that small and medium enterprises play significant roles towards socio-economic development of the nation serve as key source of economic growth, dynamism and flexibility, SMEs serve as entrepreneurial training avenues and create more employment opportunities and they play significant roles in the growth, development and industrialization of many economics. Small and medium enterprise in Nigeria has many factors affecting its operation such as high cost of running operations and poor state of infrastructures in the country, high cost of obtaining legal documents from corporate affairs commission and lack of access to external finance is the factors affecting small and medium enterprises in Nigeria. SMEs have problem of inadequate capital and how to raise capital for small and medium enterprises in Nigeria. The solutions to factors affecting small and medium enterprises in Nigeria are through government support in small and medium enterprises and support from financial institutions and commercial banks. The researcher hereby forwards this recommendation as follows: the federal and state government should re-define and improve the Directorate of Foods, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI). Government should open more roads to link rural area since most small scale organization rely on local raw materials obtain from those rural area. This will facilitate the movement of both raw materials and finished goods to where they may be demanded. government should therefore make it a policy to strengthen the relationship between small-scale industries and commercial banks. Government should ensure that commercial banks and other lender institutions relax their strength lending policies to make more loans available to small-scale industries. small and medium enterprises should be made to register as rule with the Industries Training Fund (ITF) in this way small-scale industries will acquired the needed manpower skill that will boost production and meet the exchange of dynamic economic automation and computerization production process. Government should make acquisition of land for establishment of Small and medium enterprises free for the just five years to motivate small-scale entrepreneurs to go into setting up small-scale enterprises. Government should focus their activities on small and medium enterprises. Also financial institutions and commercial banks should give small and medium enterprises access to loans and credit facilities in order to enhance their activities.