Entrepreneurship: An Alternative Strategy for Economic Development in Nigeria

Although it is widely believed that entrepreneurship is a sine qua non condition for economic development, however, not enough had been done by Government in the past to support entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Never the less, the beleaguered Nigerian economy requires resuscitation through the promotion of the ideals of entrepreneurship. Therefore, this paper focuses on the problems of entrepreneurship such as serious dearth of capital, threat from foreign competitors, fraud and inferiority syndrome, inadequacy of feasibility studies, poor state of infrastructure as well as insecurity and the problems of unfavorable monetary and fiscal policies of Government. The paper also delves into the characteristics, types and functions of the entrepreneur. The paper concludes that entrepreneurship is the bedrock of the economic development of any nation. However, it suggests that a country enjoys the fruits of economic development only when it addresses the challenges of entrepreneurship. Hence, it was recommended that government should evolve realistic monetary and fiscal policies, tackle the issue of financial crimes and corruption as well as moderate the cost of doing business among other suggestions. Key words:  Entrepreneurship, Economic Development, Entrepreneur and Accountability