Enhancing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa through Service Oriented Software Engineering (SOSE)
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Date
2015
Authors
Okewu, E
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Abstract
Experts in African development believe that small and medium businesses form the engine room of the continent's economic growth and development. This spectrum of businesses, to all intents and purposes, currently provides productive engagements for about 80% of Africans. Despite widely acknowledged contributions to the survival of the continent, adequate records have not been kept about this segment of the economy. The apparent dearth of statistics makes it difficult for entrepreneurship stakeholders such as investors, researchers, financiers, government and consultants to effectively and efficiently articulate and orchestrate a growth plan for them. This study relied on the doctrine of inclusive innovation and development to design and build an Automated System for Small and Medium Enterprises (ASSME) that avails information for these businesses to continue to grow in influence and importance. The researcher used service-oriented software engineering (SOSE) approach and against the backdrop that Nigeria is a microcosm of Africa, the study focused on the country as a testbed for implementing the web-based solution. The research methodology includes requirements engineering, modelling of the new system using universal modelling language (UML), implementing the proposed solution using Microsoft SharePoint development platform and finally, evaluating results. In the final analysis, a practical and usable n-tier enterprise application emerged. It will aid regulatory agencies like SMEDAN (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria) in gathering and coordinating information as well as availing same to entrepreneurship stakeholders in the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector for their respective growth-enhancing interventions.
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Keywords
Entrepreneurship , Software Engineering , Small and medium enterprises , Sustainable Development
Citation
Paper presented at the 2nd Covenant University International Conference on African Development Issues (CU-ICADI 2015)