Government Policies, Technological Infrastructure, and the Performance of Small and Medium Enterprises in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines the influence of government policies and technological infrastructure on the performance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Oyo State, Nigeria, focusing on revenue growth rate and customer satisfaction as performance measures. Design/Methodology – A descriptive research design was employed using a structured questionnaire (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.885) administered to 381 SME managers selected via purposive sampling from a population of 7,987 SMEs using the Taro Yamane formula. Data were collected across three senatorial districts and analysed using descriptive statistics, mean scores, and simple linear regression. Findings – Trade regulations negatively influence SME performance (β = -0.454, R² = 0.206, p < 0.001). Business data utilisation (β = 0.589, R² = 0.347), tax relief (β = 0.534, R² = 0.285), social media usage (β = 0.516, R² = 0.266), ICT adoption (β = 0.497, R² = 0.247), and grants and loan access (β = 0.434, R² = 0.188) all positively influence performance (all p < 0.001). Practical Implications – Policymakers should streamline trade regulations, expand targeted tax relief, improve access to grants and concessionary loans, and promote ICT infrastructure, digital literacy, and social media competency among SMEs in Oyo State. Originality/Value – This study is among the first to simultaneously examine government policy and technological infrastructure variables within a single empirical framework in Oyo State, Nigeria, demonstrating that business data utilisation yields the strongest positive effect on SME performance among all technology variables tested.