IMPACT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS ACQUISITION ON POVERTY ERADICATION AMONG BUSINESS EDUCATION STUDENTS

Abstract

Entrepreneurship development is considered as a way to tackle some of the socio economic problems that bedeviled some countries presently, especially problem of high poverty and unemployment. This study examined the impact of entrepreneurial skills acquisition on poverty eradication among young business education students. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design with the use of a 20-item questionnaire to get information from the respondents. The target population used for this study comprised final year NCE students of Federal College of Education, Abeokuta, Ogun State. Random sampling technique was used to select one hundred and twenty respondents. Descriptive statistical tools of frequency count and mean was used to determine the responses of the respondents. The findings of the study revealed that; major saleable skills that make business education graduates self- employed include: computer literacy skills, poultry farming, fish farming, soap making among others, it was equally revealed that entrepreneurship training provides employment opportunities for final year students and entrepreneurship education serves as a catalyst for economic growth and development. The study recommended that government should provide more infrastructures for entrepreneurial development and provide credit schemes especially to the young artisans and tertiary institutions graduate to encourage entrepreneurial development. The study also recommended that more entrepreneurship training programme should be intensified to all levels of education curriculum to promote human empowerment and development through entrepreneurial skill acquisition to reduce poverty in the society.

Keywords: Acquisition, Entrepreneur, Poverty