FACTORS AFFECTING ACQUISITION OF COMPETENT ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS FOR EFFECTIVE BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AMONG BUSINESS EDUCATION STUDENTS IN NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES

Entrepreneurship was introduced into the Nigerian school curriculum as a means of solving unemployment problem facing young school graduates and to inculcate enterprise culture on the citizenry to realize the vision and objectives of a private sector driven economy for economic global transcending. These young school graduates seem not be able to effectively match entrepreneurial skills acquired with industrial expectations (business management). Against this backdrop, this paper examined the factors that hinder the acquisition of competent entrepreneurial skill required for effective business management. This could be traceable to poor innovative and creative teaching techniques, poor students’ personal characteristics and lack of practical training among others. Strategies such as refocusing Business Education programme, human capital development, and technological improvement among others could be used to realize the objective. Therefore, it was recommended that Business Education should be accorded priority place in the Nigeria school curriculum. Teachers should be vigorous in their teaching techniques and use modern teaching system to be innovative and creative to ensure that students acquire competent entrepreneurial skills for effective business management prior to graduation.