Abstract:
There are many good reasons to promote entrepreneurship among young people. While
caution should be exercised so that entrepreneurship is not seen as a 'mass' or wide-ranging
solution which can cure all society's social ills, as many experts such as Curtain (2000) warn, it
has a number of potential benefits. An obvious, and perhaps significant one, is that it creates
employment for the young person who owns the business.
This is especially the case in an economy subject to rationalization, change and
restructuring .Many experts believe that this could bring back the alienated and marginalized
youth into the economic mainstream There may also be a direct effect on employment if new
young entrepreneurs hire fellow youths from the 'dole' queues In this way, entrepreneurship
could help address some of the socio-psychological problems and delinquency that arise from
joblessness
Youth-run enterprises (YREs) also provide valuable goods and services to society,
especially the local community .This results in the revitalization of the local community. It has
also been observed that new small firms tend to raise the degree of competition in the product
market, thereby bringing gains to consumers .In addition, the enterprises may create linkages
between youth entrepreneurs and other economic actors, such as through sub-contracting,
franchising, and so on
Youth entrepreneurship also promotes innovation and resilience as it encourages young
people to find new solutions, ideas and ways of doing things through experience-based learning
In certain circumstances, young entrepreneurs may be particularly responsive to new economic opportunities and trends. This is especially important given the on-going globalization process.
It is increasingly accepted that youth entrepreneurs can present alternatives to the organization
of work, the transfer of technology, and a new perspective to the market
White and Kenyon further note that social and cultural identity is promoted through
youth enterprises, as is a stronger sense of community where young women and men are
valued and better connected to society. They note that youth enterprises give young people,
especially marginalized youth, a sense of 'meaning' and 'belonging'. This can shape the identity
of youth and encourage others to treat them as equal members of society. A popularization and
democratization of entrepreneurship can allow the disadvantaged in society to succeed
regardless of social or family background (OECD, 2001).
In a broader sense, 'entrepreneurship', when treated as 'enterprise', helps young
women and men develop new skills and experiences that can be applied to many other
challenges in life. In the Oxford Thesaurus, 'enterprise' is defined as "resourcefulness, initiative,
drive, imagination, enthusiasm, zest, dash, ambition, energy, energy, vitality, boldness, daring,
audacity, courage, get up and go..." It is worthy noting that these attributes are generally
associated with youth.
In that sense, youth have "the qualities of resourcefulness, initiative, drive, imagination,
enthusiasm, zest, dash, ambition, energy, boldness, audacity, courage..." youth are known to
possess qualities of enthusiasm, motivation, enterprise, risk-taking, flexibility, energy,
resourcefulness and willingness to try new approaches in this regard argues that the challenge for governments, NGOs and international bodies seeking to improve youth livelihoods is to "tap
into the dynamism of young people and build on their strong spirit of risk-taking".