Influence of Accelerator Programs to the Growth of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (Msmes) Supported by Tony Elumelu Foundation- Kenya

Abstract

The study sought to investigate the influence accelerator programs have had on the growth of MSMEs supported by Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Program by carrying out an in-depth study of the specific businesses that have benefited from the program. The study was anchored on Social Networks Theory, Innovation Theory and Risk Theory of Profit. The study adopted the descriptive longitudinal survey. The population was the Kenyan MSMEs that have gone through the program between the year 2015 and 2017. The Fischer’ formula for finite population was used to determine the sample size from a total of 297 SMEs, to give a sample size of 72 businesses. A questionnaire was used to collect data. The data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in tables, bar charts and bar graphs. The study established that all the enterprises had received seed capital from the TEF. A majority of them also sourced additional capital from other sources such as banks and table banking groups. Capital was found to have a positive and significant relationship with growth of enterprises. The mentorship programme helped the beneficiaries make better decisions for their business and develop new ideas and innovative solutions/strategies for their business which had a positive association between mentorship of entrepreneurs and growth of growth of their business. The study also found out that the TEF program offered various forms of training which equipped the entrepreneurs with relevant skills to help them manage their business which influenced the growth of the beneficiaries’ businesses. It was also found that networking enhanced the beneficiaries’ talents, knowledge, and helped them gain new ideas, and get business referrals which contributed positively to the growth of the business. The study concludes that capital, mentorship program, business training and networking have a positive and significant influence on growth of TEF beneficiaries’ businesses. The study recommends need for increased capital funding from TEF foundation for business start-ups and for purposes of expanding the already established businesses as this has been seen to have an impact on the growth of the businesses. There is need to expand the training of new entrepreneurs in order to equip them with relevant skills that would enable them manage their businesses better, and steer their businesses in the right direction.