TECHNOLOGY ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA: A STUDY OF INNOVATION HUBS IN LAGOS STATE

ABSTRACT

Technology Entrepreneurship has been identified as one of the core entrepreneurship endeavour that has very high potential of improving the quality of life and economy of any nation, when it is well cultivated and applied to key gap areas within such economy. Incubation hubs as a major centre for the cultivation of such skill and enterprise play major roles in the technology entrepreneurship ecosystem and as such, this research studied forty (40) incubation hubs in Lagos State through the administration of open-ended questionnaire administered on the users of the hubs and face-to-face interviews with the initiators and founders of the hubs. The study discovered that all the technology innovation hubs provided office space with internet and the serenity required to grow entrepreneurship ideas but majority of them lack the conscious entrepreneurship development process that takes cognisance of the relevance of the ideas and the steps required to crystalize such ideas into viable products and services that will generate the real value. About 15% of the sample hubs that are well bred and equipped has created other organizations and incubation hubs and has also attracted funding from various forms of investors, seed funders and corporate organizations to grow and nurture the ideas of their users, some of which has developed products of international patronage. This study re-affirms that the provision of workspace, constant power supply and internet access are fundamentals to growing business ideas but are far from the real entrepreneurship structure where idea discovery, nurturing, funding and commercialization can be developed. In this vein, it is recommended that incubation hubs operators should not just be mere businessmen but passionate individuals and organizations who are strategic enough to create platforms and systems where complete technology entrepreneurship process should take place and thrive.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship, Innovation Hubs, Lagos State, Technology Entrepreneurship