Capital Financing Options for SMEs in Nigerian Agribusiness

Annamalah, Sanmugam
Mr Sanmugam is a senior lecturer lecturing courses for American, UK & Australian Degree & Master Programs at SEGi University College. He is a reviewer for Pearson Publications and for various journals. He has published articles in various journals and books and a trainer. He is also a consultant providing expert advice in various areas.

The aim of this research is to determine the role and impact of capital financing on the growth of SME's using Nigeria agribusiness as an empirical case study and also, discovering the missing link which might have been a factor in the failure rate and success rate of some small-scale business in Nigeria. the combined effect of internal and external capital financing options has a significant impact on growth in terms of total asset base. It also explains the role of the Government using the apex bank that is the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the measures it has taken by implementing the Small and Medium Enterprises Equity Investment Scheme (SMEEIS) whose main goal is to help with the promotion of SME's. For the growth of SMEs, this study found out that there is a noteworthy positive relationship between external financing options (Venture Capital& Business Angels/Government Assistance/Franchising); and Growth of SMEs in the Agricultural sector. The findings also showed that external capital financing options are the main drivers of growth for the SMEs.