IMPACT OF DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP ON BUSINESS GROWTH AMONG YOUTH-OWNED ENTERPRISES IN BORNO STATE, NIGERIA

This research study examine the effect of digital entrepreneurship on business growth among youth-owned enterprises in Borno State, Nigeria, specifically focusing on social media marketing, adoption of digital payments, and acquiring digital skills. Although there has been recognition for the importance of digital entrepreneurship in driving growth, youth-owned enterprises in the state still face challenges of sluggish sales growth due to lack of empirical literature that shows how these digital influences shape their performance, thus creating a gap that this study seek to fill. The study applied descriptive survey design targeting 339 youthowned enterprises within three major markets in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council. A sample size of 183 respondents was selected using Yamane's formula. Data collected from primary sources was subjected to statistical analysis employing both descriptive statistics and Multiple Regression Analysis (OLS) with the aid of SPSS version 27 at a significance level of 5%. There was statistical significance in the regression model (F = 491.827, p < 0.001), with an adjusted R² = 0.889, meaning that 88.9% of the variations in sales growth were attributed to the independent variables used. There was a positive and significant effect of social media marketing (â = 0.289, p < 0.001), there was also a positive impact of digital payment technology adoption (â = 0.351, p < 0.001), and digital skills acquisition turned out to be the best predictor (â = 0.428, p < 0.001). The study concluded that digital entrepreneurship plays a major role in increasing the sales growth of youth-owned enterprises in Borno State. It recommend that investment in digital skills, payments, and social media marketing improve business performance.