UNIZIK Don Set to Redefine Nigeria’s SME Development at 127th Inaugural Lecture

By Praise Chinecherem

A university lecturer, Professor Chinedu Onyeizugbe is set to unveil a practical and research-driven framework for strengthening Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem through an improved model of the Igbo Apprenticeship Scheme.

Onyeizugbe, will be unveiling the framework at the 127th Inaugural Lecture of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, scheduled for Thursday, July 9, 2026.

In his lecture, titled: “Navigating the Labyrinth of SME Development in Nigeria: Unveiling an Improved Model of the Igbo Apprenticeship Scheme as a Mitigant,” the Professor of Management in the Department of Business Administration is expected to present years of rigorous research into one of Africa’s most successful indigenous entrepreneurial systems and propose an improved model capable of strengthening SME development, reducing business failures and accelerating sustainable economic growth in Nigeria.

Onyeizugbe, a former Director of Unizik Business School, is not merely speaking as an academic. He speaks from years of dedicated research, practical engagement and policy-oriented scholarship in management, entrepreneurship and SME development.

His academic journey has produced over eighty scholarly publications, several books, numerous postgraduate graduates and internationally recognised research on entrepreneurship, management and the Igbo Apprenticeship System.

His pioneering works, including the landmark Igba Boyi: A Study of the Igbo Apprenticeship Scheme in Onitsha Markets, have significantly enriched contemporary discourse on indigenous entrepreneurship and enterprise development.

Onyeizugbe’s scholarship extends beyond the classroom. As Director of the UNIZIK Centre for Capital Market Studies, Professor Onyeizugbe recently championed a strategic collaboration between the Centre and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), attracting more than 800 SMEs, entrepreneurs and capital market operators from different parts of Nigeria to Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

The initiative strengthened conversations around business financing, investment opportunities and the role of the capital market in SME growth.

His commitment to innovation and national development is equally reflected in the impressive grants he has attracted and managed. Among them are the ₦45 million IDEAS-TVET Project funded by the World Bank for training unemployed youths in fashion design and garment making and the ₦50 million grant for establishing the Centre for Artificial Intelligence at Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Other grants he attracted and managed were a ₦15 million research grant on reinvigorating Igbo entrepreneurial behaviour through enhanced apprenticeship; participation in the University’s $3.3 million ICT Development Project funded by Agence Française de Développement (AFD); and a £100,000 Royal Academy of Engineering (United Kingdom) grant supporting higher education partnerships in Sub-Saharan Africa.

These achievements demonstrate a scholar whose work consistently bridges theory and practice, producing knowledge that addresses real societal challenges. Prof. Onyeizugbe also served as the chairman, Anambra State “One Youth Two Skills” Entrepreneurship Scheme that empowered thousands of Anambra Youths.

The forthcoming inaugural lecture will therefore be much more than an academic tradition. It will serve as a platform for unveiling a practical and research-driven framework for strengthening Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem through an improved model of the Igbo Apprenticeship Scheme.

Academics, researchers, students, entrepreneurs, traders, market leaders, business owners, policymakers, government officials, development partners, community leaders, financial institutions and members of the organised private sector are expected to attend this landmark intellectual event.

As Nigeria continues to seek sustainable pathways to economic growth, job creation and enterprise development, this lecture promises fresh insights capable of influencing policy, reshaping entrepreneurial practice and unlocking new possibilities for SMEs across the country.