Massive Employment Creation through Multi-Stakeholders’ Partnership Approach to Entrepreneurial Initiatives in Nigeria

Abstract

The numerous government interventions in entrepreneurship development after independence have not reduced the unemployment rate in Nigeria. Recent public projection of unemployment rate by the federal government in May 2019 from 23.1 per cent to 33.5 per cent by year 2020, has unimaginable consequences. The question then is, what are the governments’ at various levels and their partners not doing right and what changes are needed in the policies, plans and strategies adopted in the past. The main thrust of the paper is to provide an alternative strategy for addressing the problem of unemployment in Nigeria through multi-stakeholder partnership approach to entrepreneurial initiatives for massive job creation. The study has used qualitative design to explain the numerous social intervention programmes adopted by government to reduce the rate of youth unemployment in the country, during military and civilian regimes with reasons why they have not yielded the desired results. The study concluded that the problem of unemployment in Nigeria can be solved with collective adoption of strategic entrepreneurial initiatives of relevant stakeholders: government, professional institutions, academia, financial institutions, industry, not-for-profit organisations, faith based institutions, schools, international donors and the media. The study recommended the joint promotion of entrepreneurial initiatives by all stakeholders as an alternative strategy for achieving the dream of sustainable youth employment creation in Nigeria.