AN ANALYSIS OF MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM SCALE ENTERPRISES AND INCOME GENERATION IN NASARAWA STATE, NIGERIA: A STUDY OF RICE MILLING ENTERPRISES

Abstract

The study examined the contribution of rice milling micro, small and medium scale enterprises to income generation in Nasarawa state Nigeria, using descriptive statistics and generalized linear models. The results revealed that four of the variables start-up capital (SuC), Quantity of Rice Produced (QRP), Quantity of Rice Sold (QRS) and Level of Education (LEDU) had positive impacts on income generation (INC) in the study area. It showed that an increase in SuC led to an increase in income generation by 0.397 per cent. An increase in QRP, QRS and LEDU led to an increase in income generation by 0.773, 0.296 and 0.015 per cent respectively. Expenses (EXPn) and Savings (SAV) had negative impacts on income generation. However, only SuC, QRP, QRS and EXPn had statistically significant impact on income generation. The study concluded that rice milling activities have significantly contributed to income generation in Nasarawa state, Nigeria. The study recommended that government should encourage the unemployed to engage in rice milling activities by making policies and introducing programmes to support rice milling activities. Provision of improved technology at affordable rates with extended repayment timelines or moratorium would encourage local rice millers. This would give locally produced rice an edge to compete in the global market thereby generating more income.