EFFECT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION ON AGRIBUSINESS ENTREPRENEURS’ PERFORMANCE IN EBONYI STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study estimated the degree of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and the effect of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) on the performance of agribusiness entrepreneurs in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Primary data were collected using a well-structured questionnaire and oral interviews. One hundred agribusiness entrepreneurs were selected through a multi-stage random sampling procedure. Data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation were used. Multiple regression was used to examine the relationship between each of the constructs of entrepreneurial orientation and the agribusiness performance of entrepreneurs. The grand mean result of the degree of innovativeness, pro-activeness, and risk-taking dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation was greater than three (>3), showing that the three EO dimensions studied significantly contributed to agribusiness performance in the study area. The result of regression analysis shows that two out of the three EO constructs (pro-activeness p< 0.01, and risk-taking initiative p< 0.01) and education(p< 0.05) had a significant positive relationship with the performance of the agribusiness entrepreneurs with a coefficient of multiple determination (R²) of 0.731. The study concluded that the application of EO constructs led to an increase in agribusiness performance. It recommended awareness creation to embrace entrepreneurial orientation dimensions by agribusiness entrepreneurs in the study area so as to increase their profit by always searching for and promoting new opportunities. Involvement in a calculated risk venture, while the government should ke advantage of the literacy level to organize training, workshops, and seminars to position the entrepreneurs toward tackling the emerging challenges in the agribusiness sector.