UKAIDI Chris U. A.
College of Economics and Management
Kampala International University Uganda
ukaidichris@kiu.ac.ug
SSEKAJUGO Derrick
College of Economics and Management
Kampala International University Uganda
UKAIDI Evelyn
Department of Business Management
University of Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria
FRANKLIN Muhereza T.
College of Economics and Management
Kampala International University, Uganda
ABSTRACT
Road merchandise contribute to socio-economic development of developing countries. This investigation assessed the contribution of road merchants to the socio-economic development of Cross River Sate in Nigeria. The work employed a survey research and adopted a mixed method to gather data from road vendors. Purposive sampling was used to select the unit of analysis. The result showed that road vendors contribute to socio-economic development through self-employment; and the road vending helps to reduce poverty. The investigation concludes that road merchandising contributes to economic growth of Cross River State, Nigeria; and recommends that road merchants should be assisted by government through soft loans and developmental partners to improve their entrepreneurial skills and transform their wellbeing.
Keywords: Road merchants, socio economic development, poverty reduction, unemployment