Chris Cupido

SMMEs provide an indispensable framework for addressing unemployment, poverty and boosting the economy of a country. This report was impelled by the need to create and sustain enterprises within the hotels and restaurant sub-sector of the tourism industry in Libreville, Gabon. A quantitative methodology was embraced to disperse seventy self-administered questionnaires to owners and managers of hotels and restaurants. The results demonstrate that the key components which lead to the failure or non-sustainability of businesses include: limited access to start-up finance required to cover start-up and growth cost, the low return on investment, as well as the mismanagement of businesses. Given that job creation remains a dependable method for diminishing unemployment and poverty, establishing and sustaining businesses in Libreville would be a step in the right direction in Gabon.

Keywords: venture creation, enterprise development, entrepreneurship challenges, Libreville.
JEL Classification: M13, L26, L83