The majority of the population lives in villages, the village is the back bone of the country and village industries play an important role in the national economy, particularly in the rural development. Rural entrepreneurship is not only important as a means of generating employment opportunities in the rural areas with low capital cost and raising the real income of the people, but also its contribution to the development of agriculture and urban industries. Rural entrepreneurship can be considered one of the solutions to reduce poverty, migration, economic disparity, unemployment and develop rural areas and backward regions.
2. Objectives of study:
To analyze the concept of rural entrepreneurship,
To know the importance of rural entrepreneurship
To study the challenges faced by rural entrepreneurship
To suggest some remedial measures to solve the challenges
faced by rural entrepreneurs
To analyze the concept of Business Education
3. Introduction
The majority of the population lives in villages, the village is the
back bone of the country and village industries play an
important role in the national economy, particularly in the rural
development. Rural entrepreneurship is not only important as a
means of generating employment opportunities in the rural
areas with low capital cost and raising the real income of the
people, but also its contribution to the development of
agriculture and urban industries. Rural entrepreneurship can be
considered one of the solutions to reduce poverty, migration,
economic disparity, unemployment and develop rural areas and
backward regions.
4. Meaning of Entrepreneurs,
Entrepreneurship & Rural Entrepreneurship
• Entrepreneur is defined as an individual who organizes or
operates a business.
• Entrepreneurship has to do with the process of bringing together
creative and innovative ideas as well as management and
organizational skills so as to be able to integrate man, machineries
and other organizational resources for the purpose of satisfying
the identified needs of the customer, thereby creating wealth.
• Rural Entrepreneurship emerging at village level which can take
place in a variety of fields of Endeavour such as business, industry,
agriculture and acts as a factor for economic development”.
5. Types of Rural Entrepreneurship
Agro Based Enterprises: This category includes direct sale or processing of
agro products such as wine industry, jiggery, pickles, sugar industries, oil
processing from oil seeds, dairy products, fruit juice, spices etc
Forest Based Industries: forest provides us different types of materials which
are used as raw material for certain industries. These industries include wood
products, coir industry, beedi making, honey making, bamboo products, paper,
match, lac, sports, plywood etc.
Mineral Based Industry: This type of industries use minerals and metals as
raw material are called minerals based industry These include stone crushing,
cement industries-limestone, silica, alumina and gypsum wall coating powders,
iron and steel, fertiliser etc.
Textile Industry: Indian textile industry is cotton based industry which
includes weaving, colouring, and spinning and bleaching, Silk, Jute, Wool etc
during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it is home based system of
manufacturing.
Handicrafts: These include making of wooden or bamboo handicrafts that are
local to that area, traditional decorative products, toys and all other forms of
handicrafts typical to the region
Engineering and services: These include agricultural equipments, tractors
and pump sets, repairs etc.
6. Importance of rural entrepreneurship
Provides employment opportunities:
Rural entrepreneurship is labour intensive and creates large-scale employment
opportunities for the rural people. Rural entrepreneurship provides a clear solution
to the growing problem of large-scale unemployment and underemployment of
rural industry
Check on migration of rural population:
Rural population moves towards urban for various reasons like income generation,
searching good job, utilize various facilities etc. Rural entrepreneurship will bring in
or develop infrastructural facilities like roads, power, bridges etc. It reduces the gaps
and disparities in income between rural and urban areas. Rural entrepreneurship
can avoid the migration of people from rural to urban areas in search of jobs.
Balanced regional development:
Rural entrepreneurship controls the concentration of industry in urban areas and
thereby promotes balanced regional development in the economy.
Promotion of artistic activities:
Rural industries also help protect and promote the art and handicrafts, i.e. the age-
old rich heritage of the country.
Check on social evils:
The growth of rural entrepreneurship reduces the social evils like poverty, social
tensions, atmospheric pollution, the growth of slums and ignorance of inhabitants
etc.
7. Importance of rural entrepreneurship
Awaken the rural youth:
Rural entrepreneurship encourages young and promising entrepreneurs to
develop and carry out entrepreneurial activities in the rural sector.
Improves standard of living:
Rural entrepreneurship will also increase the literacy rate of rural people. Their
education and self-employment will prosper the community, thus improving
their standard of living.
Proper utilisation of local resources:
Rural industries help in the maximum utilisation of local resources like raw
materials and labour for productive purposes and thus increase productivity.
Efficient and effective use of limited resources by the entrepreneurs leads to
overall economic development of an area.
Earnings of foreign exchange:
Rural entrepreneurship plays significant role in increasing the foreign exchange
earnings of the country through export of their produce.
Improvement in per capita income:
Rural entrepreneurship generates more output, employment and wealth by
exploiting new opportunities, thereby helping to improve the per capita income
of rural people.
8. Challenges in Rural Entrepreneurship
Lack of finance
Finance is the lifeblood of the business. Most of the rural entrepreneurs are mainly
struggling to raise the finance for their businesses. Non availability of adequate
collateral security often mars the chances of rural youth in obtaining adequate
funds in time to set up their own venture. Due to this, the entrepreneurs are forced
to take credit from village money lenders who charge exorbitant rates of interest.
Lack of knowledge
There is a distinct lack of adequate knowledge of entrepreneurial opportunities
among the rural youth less awareness of entrepreneurial knowledge . The Educated
and trained youths mostly leave for urban destinations in search of jobs.
Lack of technical know-how
On account of the faulty education system rural youth lack managerial, professional,
technical know-how which is an impediment in developing the spirit of enterprise,
consequently not many people come forward to establish Self-employment units.
Absence of enterprising skill
Most of the rural people lack risk bearing ability Reluctant to involve oneself in
business, inclination towards wage employment, lack of creative thinking are few
reasons which have restricted the growth of self-employment in rural area.
9. Challenges in Rural Entrepreneurship
Lack of infrastructural facilities
Rural areas are characterized by poor infrastructural facilities viz, roads, water,
market, electricity, street lighting, road transport, storage and communication etc.
which hamper the smooth movement of various industrial activities.
Adverse social, cultural and industrial environment
Social evils, caste systems, fatalism, religious superstitions, particularly in the
country side, do not allow development of adventurous spirit. Lack of skill and
expertise in labourers, their tendency to migrate to cities and consumer’s habit to
buy goods produced by big companies create many problems for new
entrepreneurs.
Lack of market information due to poor communication facility
The absence of effective communication and access to the right information makes
it difficult for rural entrepreneurs to understand market trends and policies followed
by the government on industrialization.
Non availability of skilled labours
In rural areas, skilled labours cannot be found easily by the entrepreneurs. Highly
skilled personnel prefer to work in big cities due to high salary than rural areas.
10. Challenges in Rural Entrepreneurship
Low quality products
Nowadays, the consumers are more sensitive to the quality of the products.
But, rural entrepreneurs cannot produce quality products due to poor
quality of raw materials and lack of standardized tools and equipments.
Fear to invest in the business
Rural entrepreneurs have low risk bearing ability due to lack of financial
resources and external support. So, they restrict to invest in their businesses
in rural areas.
Competition
Rural entrepreneurs are facing tough competition from urban entrepreneurs
and larger scale organizations. They cannot compete with the urban
entrepreneurs due to lack of standardization and branding of the products.
Middleman
Rural entrepreneurs mainly depend on middlemen for marketing their
products. But they betrayed by offering low prices to their goods.
11. Remedial Measures to solve the Challenges
Provision for credit facilities:
As finance is considered as lubricant for setting up and running an industry,
sufficient amount of funds must be available on time at soft terms. Banks
and financial institutions must come forward to provide credit to rural
industries at concessional and subsidize rate on easy terms and conditions.
Creation of strong raw-material base:
Raw materials are must for any industry. However, rural industries face
tough problem in procuring and storing of raw materials. Therefore, an
urgent policy is called for to strengthen the raw material base in the rural
sector on priority basis.
Common Production-cum-Marketing Centre need to be set up:
Marketing is another area where rural industries are weak. In order to solve
the problem of marketing, common production-cum-marketing centers
need to be set up and developed with modern infrastructural facilities. This
will help in promoting export business on one hand and bringing the buyers
and sellers in close interaction avoiding middlemen in between them on the
other.
12. Remedial Measures to solve the Challenges
Offering training facilities: Training is essential for the overall
development of entrepreneurships. It also enables the rural
entrepreneurs to undertake the venture successfully as it
certainly imparts required skills to run the enterprise.
Creation of awareness of various facilities amongst the rural
people:
The rural people are not aware of the facilities available in
setting up rural industries. Therefore, it is the need to
disseminate information about what is available through
vocational training, Entrepreneurs Development Programs,
screening of Audio-visual films on various rural related
enterprises, etc. This will expose them to modern amenities and
facilities available in the rural sector so that they can start their
enterprises.
13. Introduction of Business education
It is the desire of every society to achieve a sustainable level of
economic development. This could be possible through
embarking on entrepreneurial activities by the citizens of the
society. The success of a society in entrepreneurship depends on
education (skills) acquired by the entrepreneurs. Business
education which is described as an education for business and
about business could make a person to perform well as an
entrepreneur. He require skill of Book keeping, Cost Accounting,
Business Management, Marketing, Business Communication,
Business Economics, Banking & Finance etc. which are all
necessary for the promotion and survival of Business
enterprises.
14. Concept of Business Education
According to Abdullahi, Business education is an aspect of total
educational programme which provides the recipient with
knowledge, skills, understanding and attitude needed to
perform well in the business world as a producer or consumer of
goods and services.
According to National open University defines Business education
as an aspect of vocational education that equips people with
necessary skills and theoretical knowledge needed for
performance in business world either for job occupation or self
employment.
Business education is an education for and about business. It
combines both theoretical and practical knowledge.
15. Business Education Promote Entrepreneurship
• Identification of business opportunities- enable them to identify
investment opportunities in their societies, it would also make it
possible for them to use the strengths, weakness, opportunity
and threats analysis to function as well.
• Skills for financial management- the knowledge of Business
education help towards proper keeping of financial records. it
would also guide the entrepreneurs in cost analysis, inventory
control and profit determination.
• Utilization of proper marketing skills- knowledge of marketing
enable them to make use of Product, Price, Place and Promotion
and also other promotional techniques to stimulate customers
to buy the product.
16. Business Education Promote Entrepreneurship
Skills for proper Business Management- Business education help
to entrepreneurs to successfully manage their ventures through
the process of planning, organizing, directing and controlling the
available human and material resources
Avoidance of business failure- every entrepreneur to ensure his
business survives as a going concern, their knowledge of
economics is expected to make them to be rational and ensure
them proper allocation and utilization of the available resources
to avoid business failure.
17. Entrepreneurship Development Institute
Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship Management &
Technology, Mumbai.
The National Institute for Entrepreneurship and small
Business Development, Delhi Ministry of skill development
Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Supported
by Gujarat Govt. Diploma in Business entrepreneurship.
Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
Nirma Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
IIM Bangaolre- Management Programme for women
Entrepreneurship, Management Programme for
Entrepreneurs and Family Business.
18. Entrepreneurship Development Institute
S.P.Jain Institute of Management & Research, Mumbai-Grow
Your Business Certification Programme.
Xavier Institute of Management & Entrepreneurship,
Bangalore, Entrepreneurial Development Programme.
Amity Business School, Noida – MBA –Entreprenturship
D.Y.Patil Management Institute, Mumbai, M.B.A. in
Entrepreneurship Management.
Delhi Business School- Specialization in Entrepreneurship
Enterprise Development Institute, Kolkata, diploma in
Entrepreneurship.
European Management Institute, Delhi, M.B.A. in
Entrepreneurship Development.
