Financial Literacy and Small and Medium Enterprises
Abstract
*Odebiyi, Itunu I, Fasesin, Oladipo O, Ayo-Oyebiyi, G. T.
The study examines the influence of financial literacy on the performance of SMEs with particular reference to SMEs registered with Lagos Business directory. The total population of the study comprises all 376 SMEs that registered and listed in Lagos Business Directory. Closed-ended questionnaires were employed to collect data from 190 SME entrepreneurs. The result reveals that the majority of the SME operators had a numeracy level of financial literacy of using a calculator for addition and subtraction only. This implies that most of the small business entrepreneurs did not have a spectrum of financial skills. It was also discovered that financial literacy dimensions independently and jointly influence SMEs’ performance. Therefore, the study recommends that SME entrepreneurs should leverage on the spectrum of financial skills, and also there should be a collaboration between SME entrepreneurs and accounting professional bodies in Nigeria, to organize seminars and workshops on financial literacy. Thus, this will go a long way to equip SME entrepreneurs with an array of financial skills such as book-keeping, cash management, inventory management, daily cash reconciliation and budgeting
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