The Impact of Globalization on Entrepreneurship Development in Developing Economies: A Theoretical Analysis of the Nigerian Experience in the Manufacturing Industry

The paper examines the globalization phenomenon and its impact on entrepreneurship development in developing economies. It appreciates the various perspectives of globalization concept, however, it narrows the discussion to economic globalization and globalization of business in particular. A focus on the implications of globalization for entrepreneurship development in developing countries is imperative, in view of the role of entrepreneurship as the engine of economic growth,and also, considering the apparent controversy about the role of globalization in national economic growth and development which is polarized between a positive perspective and a negative perspective. The paper presents a critical analysis and appraisal of the impact of globalization on entrepreneurship in Nigeria. The analysis is founded on a blend of scattered observations and some qualified reasoning based on information from literature on indigenous entrepreneurship and economic/industrial activities, since the past one decade when the gospel of globalization began; and the relationship between globalization and entrepreneurship. The analysis reveals that globalization has both positive and negative implications for entrepreneurship development, however it is noted that for developing economies, the negative impact far outweigh the positive impact. It is therefore recommended that developing countries must make conscious effort to engage economic policies and measures to manage the influence of globalization on entrepreneurship development, in a way that reduces the negative impact and promotes the positive impact. In conclusion, the paper emphasizes that developing countries must operate a selective or guided open system with regards to business entry into their economies from outside, to guard against market adverse effect due to globalization. Key words: Globalization; Entrepreneurship development; Impact guided open system; National economic growth and developmen