Chapter One — 1.1 Background to the Study

In recent years, Venture Capital Funding has emerged as a critical factor shaping business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs across organizations operating in and around Kano State. As institutions grapple with the pressures of globalization, regulatory reform, and shifting stakeholder expectations, understanding how venture capital funding relates to business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs has become an important area of both scholarly and practical concern.

Kano State presents a useful setting for examining this relationship precisely because the conditions there — structural, regulatory, and behavioural — differ from those typically assumed in the broader literature, most of which draws on evidence from more developed economies.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Despite a growing body of literature on venture capital funding, there remains limited consensus on the precise nature of its relationship with business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs, particularly within Kano State. Many organizations continue to make decisions about venture capital funding without a clear, evidence-based understanding of how those decisions ultimately affect business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs. This gap between practice and empirical understanding is the central problem this study seeks to address.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

1. To examine the effect of Venture Capital Funding on business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs in Kano State.
2. To assess the extent to which venture capital funding influences business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs within the study area.
3. To identify the challenges associated with venture capital funding in relation to business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs.
4. To recommend strategies for optimizing venture capital funding in order to improve business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs.

1.4 Research Questions

1. What is the effect of venture capital funding on business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs in Kano State?
2. To what extent does venture capital funding influence business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs within the study area?
3. What challenges are associated with venture capital funding in relation to business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs?
4. What strategies can be adopted to optimize venture capital funding in order to improve business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs?

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study is significant to a range of stakeholders. For policymakers and regulators, the findings offer evidence to guide the design of frameworks that support healthier outcomes around business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs. For managers and practitioners within Kano State, the study provides practical insight into how venture capital funding can be better managed. Finally, it contributes to the academic literature on entrepreneurship by extending existing knowledge into a specific empirical context, and offers a reference point for future researchers.

1.6 Scope of the Study

The study is limited to an examination of Venture Capital Funding and its relationship with business survival rate of university student entrepreneurs within the context of Kano State. It reflects a PhD-level scope of analysis and relies on data and perspectives available within that scope; generalizing the findings beyond this specific context should therefore be done with appropriate caution.