Abstract
The objective of this study is to identify the determinants of rural entrepreneurs’ participation in training programs with empirical evidence from the East Mamprusi District in the northern region of Ghana. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to obtain data from 120 owners of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises via a multistage sampling process. Logistic regression was used to analyze the data. The study identifies several factors to have significant influence on the likelihood of participation. These include entrepreneur’s socio-demographic features, access to services and past experience acquired in their business operations. Government, Non-governmental Organizations and Civil Society Organizations should, therefore, put more effort in widening the scope of participation in entrepreneurial skills development training. Appropriate attention should be given to gender, age, education, past experience, membership to association and media of advertisement since they are the factors that drive entrepreneurial motivation to participate in training programs. Rural entrepreneurs should develop the initiative to form associations where information on training needs can easily reach them. Any training intervention should also target young entrepreneurs to have more participants. These results have implications for entrepreneurship development in least developed countries.
Highlights
In recent years, it has been acknowledged that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can positively influence the economic growth of developing countries (Kayanula and Quartey, 2000)
Questionnaires were administered to the respondents covering demographic characteristics of rural entrepreneurs and their participation in job training programs
Small and medium scale enterprises operate in the East Mamprusi District in different fields
Summary
It has been acknowledged that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can positively influence the economic growth of developing countries (Kayanula and Quartey, 2000). Entrepreneurship is an individual effort of turning ideas into action (European Commission, 2009) which stimulates employment a key issue for poverty reduction (Hussain et al, 2014). This requires some kind of education or training. The results of the 2000 Population and Housing Census (PHC) showed that about 80% of the economically active population in Ghana work in the informal sector (Ghana Statistical Service, 2008) This consists of major trade group such as textile, apparel and furnishing, building and material moving which takes persons aged 15 and older as apprentices. This consists of major trade group such as textile, apparel and furnishing, building and material moving which takes persons aged 15 and older as apprentices. Beer (2012) indicates that training is the link from having a successful business to a thriving one
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