Knowledge, Productivity and Innovation in Nigeria

The more the merrier? Network portfolio size and innovation performance in Nigerian firms

“…In backward economies it is much more difficult to find sufficient financial, knowledge and institutional support for innovation (Schmitz, 1982). In the specific case of Nigeria, Biggs et al (1995) as well as Radwan and Pellegrini (2010) noted that the context for manufacturing is of a harsh economic and institutional nature. One specific way by which firms substitute for their resource deficiencies is through networking.…”

“…For instance, electricity is a challenge for all Nigerian firms but its impact is more significant in the manufacturing sector. Moreover, manufacturing is much more prone to productivity losses due to poor transport infrastructure which results in production loss in transit (Radwan and Pellegrini, 2010). These partly explain why it tends to perform worse than the service sector, at least in terms of contribution to GDP.…”

Between Commoditization and Utilitarianism: Knowledge Production, Historical Scholarship, and Development in Nigeria

“…Students who major in history as their choice discipline should be encouraged to take courses that have practical orientation especially in the areas of ICT to enable them more opportunities for global competitiveness. Knowledge has always been central to development, and historically, cultures that knew more than others were better able to adapt to their environments, survive, and thrive (Radwan and Pellegrini 2010). Consequently, the promotion, management, and dissemination of knowledge in all ramifications are key to socio-economic development (Technology for Education 2012) and well-being of the country that desires to be globally competitive.…”

Cooperation resources, absorptive capacity and firm-level innovation

“…For instance, using data from the World Bank Enterprise Surveys, Radwan and Pellegrini (2010) showed in an international comparison of eight mostly developing countries that Nigerian firms faced the worst electricity constraints in 2006. More than 90% of Nigerian firms had experienced power outages during that year, compared with 21% in Venezuela.…”

“…Moreover, in the Nigerian context, the effect of constraints in the business environment on firm-level productivity and innovativeness has been shown to vary with certain firm characteristics such as size, location and ownership (Radwan and Pellegrini, 2010). Thus, as far as the data would allow, the following controls for firm heterogeneity are included 10 : the log of employees (SIZE), and dummies for whether the firm is located within or outside Lagos (LOCATION), 11 exports to at least one foreign market (EXPORT), belongs to a group (GROUP) or is from service or manufacturing (SERVICE).…”