Surviving In Africa’S Emerging Markets: Informal Micro Entrepreneurship And Social Capital Dynamics To The Rescue

In spite of preponderance of microenterprises in Africa’s emerging markets, there is a dearth of knowledge about what motivates a microentrepreneur to start operations in the informal sector. This study therefore examined informal microentrepreneurship in Africa’s emerging markets and considered the degree to which owners perceive enterprise as a necessity or opportunity. The extent to which social capital dynamics influence starting and sustaining a microenterprise in the informal sector was also assessed while self-affirmation theory served as theoretical underpinning of the study. Consequently, based on a number of factors, Nigeria was selected as population of study. A conversational interview method through face-to-face semi-structured interviews was employed to retrieve information from owners of microenterprises. Findings revealed that informal microentrepreneurship in Africa’s emerging markets are necessity-driven and anchored on survival of owners. Additionally, it was established that social capital dynamics play a germane role in starting and sustaining microenterprises in the informal economy. Policy implications for governments in Africa’s emerging markets include finding avenues of reducing costs associated with doing business while individuals in environments with limited opportunities need to consciously seek active personal ties and social embeddedness that could help them in starting or sustaining an enterprise.