DOING BUSINESS IN NIGERIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR AFRICA’S INDUSTRIALIZATION

Evidence has shown that no continent can develop without being industrialized and such industrialization must be seen as emanating from the individual Nations that make up the continent. Africa as a continent has continued to lag behind in industrialization mainly because most of the countries that make it up are still not measuring up in the indices of global competitiveness, especially the ease of doing business index published by the World Bank. Nigeria, the focus of the study, usually described as one of the largest economies in Africa, still has many hurdles preventing it from satisfying most indicators of the ease of doing business index. This study was informed by the need to investigate the specific factors militating against the ease of doing business in Nigeria comparing them with those of select leading nations. Findings reveal that procedures for starting a business, getting electricity, registering property, and paying taxes were the most problematic areas encountered by Nigeria’s small and medium scale businesses. It was, therefore, recommended that procedures and requirements towards reaching the mentioned indices in the ease of doing business should be made more easily accessible and multiple taxations made impossible through more stringent laws.