Integration of Entrepreneurship Education into Adult Literacy Curricula in Enugu State

This study examined the integration of entrepreneurship education into adult literacy curricula in Enugu State, South East Nigeria. Given Nigeria's pressing unemployment crisis and the growing evidence that entrepreneurship skills education can meaningfully improve self-employment outcomes among low-income adults, the strategic embedding of entrepreneurship components within literacy curricula represents a high-priority curricular innovation. The study adopted a descriptive-evaluative design involving 70 curriculum officers, adult education facilitators, and literacy programme participants from three local government areas. Questionnaires, curriculum document analyses, and focus group discussions formed the data collection framework. Findings revealed that entrepreneurship education was largely absent from existing adult literacy curricula in the state, with only two out of fifteen reviewed curriculum frameworks containing any business skills content. Learners consistently expressed strong interest in acquiring entrepreneurship skills but reported that existing programme offerings did not address these aspirations. Facilitators identified inadequate training in business education facilitation and absence of approved entrepreneurship learning materials as the primary barriers to integration. Pilot centres that had independently introduced simple entrepreneurship modules reported markedly higher learner motivation and retention. Recommendations include revising the Enugu State adult literacy curriculum framework to incorporate a dedicated entrepreneurship education module, developing practical business skills instructional materials appropriate for low-literacy learners, training facilitators in entrepreneurship education delivery, and partnering with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria to provide post-literacy business support to programme graduates. Keywords: entrepreneurship education, adult literacy, curriculum integration, Enugu State, business skills.