Rural Entrepreneurship

Rural Entrepreneurship: An Introduction

            The concept of rural entrepreneurship does not dilute the definition of entrepreneurs in general. An entrepreneur is an individual who fails to conform to the traditional structured role given to him in society and finds an exit to venture on his own. In this context of his deviant pursuit, the societal frame of reference of a rural entrepreneur assumes operational significance. Like entrepreneurship, rural entrepreneurship also conjures different meanings to different people. Without going into semantics, rural entrepreneurship can simply be defined as entrepreneurship in rural areas. In other words, establishing industrial units in the rural areas refers to rural entrepreneurship.

Rural entrepreneurship is, fundamentally, about using a market-driven business model to address key socio-economic issues pertaining to the rural economy under consideration. It is an emerging field with diverse and shifting interpretations. Entrepreneurship emerging in rural areas is called rural entrepreneurship. Rural entrepreneurship symbolizes rural industrialization. Rural industrialization provides the best solution to tackle with the twin problems of unemployment and poverty stalking the rural areas in the country. That is why the government of India has been assigning increasing importance to the development of rural industrialization or entrepreneurship in her subsequent five year plans.  The focus of rural entrepreneurship is, therefore, very clear. Firstly, it can produce self employment opportunities, to the millions and thus, reduce unemployment; secondly, it can augment employment avenues for others in backward areas and bring in balanced regional development to alleviate poverty (Ahmad, R., et al., 2012). This perspective has viewed and elaborated rural entrepreneurship as rural industrialization consisting mainly of agro-based industries, Khadi and village industries and cottage industries. Rural Entrepreneurship attempts to cater the rural need for Employment generation (Awogben and Iwuamadi, 2010), Income generation, rural development, build up village republics and stopping rural-urban migration (Abraham and Kalamkar, 2011).

The Rural Entrepreneur

Entrepreneur is a person who assumes risk and control of commercial enterprise. Entrepreneurs have been described as people who have the ability to see and evaluate business opportunities, gather the necessary resources to take advantage of them and initiate appropriate action to ensure success. He is a risk- taker, a man, or woman who bears uncertainty, strikes out on his or her own, and through natural wit, devotion to duty and singleness of purpose, somehow creates a business and industrial activity where none existed before. Bird (1992) sees entrepreneurs as mercurial, that is, prone to insights, brainstorms, deceptions, ingeniousness and resourcefulness. They are cunning, opportunistic, creative, and unsentimental.

Rural entrepreneurship is the work of a rural entrepreneur. A Rural entrepreneur is someone who recognizes a business or self employment opportunity in the rural or village context and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture assuming risk and rewards. Successful entrepreneurship is hard work carried out in an unpredictable environment. A Rural entrepreneur is someone who is prepared to stay in the rural area and contribute to the creation of local wealth by recognizing a business opportunity and using a market-driven business model to address key socio-economic issues pertaining to the rural economy. The economic goals of a rural entrepreneur and the social goals of rural development are strongly inter-linked. Rural entrepreneurs are persons whose primary occupation and main source of livelihood is farming or agriculture related no-farm economic activities and take up an enterprise in the village based on their skills. Rural entrepreneur is a person with a drive and ability to bear risk assuming the rewards (Alasadi and Abdelrahim, 2007). He is the spark-plug who transforms the rural economic scene. Hence, it is said that an economy is an effect for which rural entrepreneurship is the cause. Rural entrepreneurship development has, therefore, become a matter of great concern in all developing countries all over the world. But the real problem is how to develop rural entrepreneurship. Broadly, rural entrepreneurs fall into the categories of Farm Entrepreneurs, Artisan Entrepreneurs, Merchant and Trading Entrepreneurs, Tribal Entrepreneurs, service entrepreneur and Micro & small village manufacturer.

            The different empirical studies and observations made researcher to conceptualize the prevailing trends of form and nature of rural entrepreneurs as Micro and Small Village Entrepreneurs (MSVEs). MSVEs are viewed as those people who start and set up Micro and Small Village enterprises which are classified into small, tiny, Cottage and Household Industries, Handloom and Textiles, Khadi and Village Industries, Handicrafts Development and Sericulture etc. MSVEs are found to be engaged in the production of goods, agro and related products, micro/Tiny/cottage level manufacturing enterprises, trading enterprise and service providing enterprise covering artisans, skilled craftsman and technicians in the areas identified as Villages, small towns which are socio-economically poor, areas rural in nature, industrially backward or less developed or areas purely having purely agricultural or farming pattern of occupation. MSVEs focus on cottage industry/household industry/Tiny industry/Rural Traders etc. An important component of micro and small village entrepreneurs is the unorganized sector of workers- Rural Artisans, especially in the rural population.  A noticeable aspect is the existence of artisans in this informal sector.  These artisans comprise blacksmiths, carpenters, weavers (carpets, durries, khesh, sarees, etc.), potters, mudha makers, hand tool makers, farm implement makers, metal wares (silver, brass, copper) makers, sculpturists (wood, metal clay, stone), handicraft makers, etc.  These artisans, on one hand, are regarded as custodians of the heritage of India, and on the other, play an important role in the village life through their repairs and maintenance services.

Rural Entrepreneurship in India

            Rural entrepreneurship is acknowledged as an important component that contributes to the economic development of a country. These days rural entrepreneurship in India is seen as the largest force in the development of the rural areas. In fact, many of the developing countries in the world have used the concept of rural entrepreneurship as a very successful method of deterring rural unrest. Abraham and Kalamkar (2011) stated that in India, initiatives like the IRDP and the SGSY were undertaken to reach the poor in the rural areas aimed at increasing income through self-employment. Many of these programs, gave thrust to promoting group entrepreneurship as group approach was considered to be more suitable and therefore to be promoted.

The states in India have taken a number of initiatives for developing industrial infrastructure to achieve consistent economic growth. The Directorate of Rural Development (DRD) plays a major role in the socio-economic growth of rural India by implementing various schemes for the upliftment of the rural people. The department has the responsibility to implement special centrally sponsored rural development schemes. At the district level, the schemes are coordinated and implemented by the district rural development agencies with the help of block agencies and other line departments. The Panchayati raj institutions are also fully involved in planning, execution, monitoring of schemes at the field level (Anjum, D., 2011).

To alleviate the poverty and for the generation of rural employment opportunities in the country, a good number of state govt. agencies, financial and development institutions are involved responsible for implementing various schemes both state and centrally sponsored rural development schemes regarding employment generation as Self Help Groups (SHG’s) National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme ,Prime Minister Rojgar Yojna, Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP),Prime Minister Employment Guarantee Programme ( PMEGP) etc. for generation of employment opportunities through establishment of micro enterprises in rural as well as urban areas. Besides, a good number of agencies like DRDAs, DICs, HKVIB, NABARD, and RRBs etc. have implemented various schemes like Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY), SHG-Bank linkage program, PMRY & REGP (now PMEGP), Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), and HSIIDC Udyog Kunj Scheme etc. Institute of Rural Research and Development in Haryana is currently targeting sustainable development in rural Haryana. The goal of the Foundation in India is to improve the overall well-being of villagers through grassroots activities and by promoting "self employment" to the youth of rural Haryana.