FINANCIAL DIGITAL LITERACY AND PROFITABILITY OF SMALL-SCALE ENTERPRISES IN PUBLIC TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA
Abstract
The study investigated the relationship between financial digital literacy and profitability of small- scale enterprises in public tertiary institutions in Cross River State, Nigeria. To achieve the purpose of this study, two research questions were posed and modified into two null hypotheses. Correlation research design was considered appropriate for the study. The population of this study consisted of 4,206 registered small scale enterprises owners operating in public tertiary institutions in Cross River State. Proportionate proportionate stratified random sampling technique was adopted in selecting 421 registered small scale enterprises owners operating in tertiary institutions in Cross River State. 30 items of four-point rating scale questionnaire titled “Financial Digital Literacy and Profitability of Small-Scale Enterprises Questionnaire (FDLPSSEQ)” was used for data collection. The instrument was validated by three experts while reliability was established using Cronbach Alpha Statistics, which yielded an overall reliability index of 0.70. To test for the study hypotheses, simple linear regression statistical tools was used for data analysis. The result obtained indicated that digital budgeting and investment significantly influence profitability of small-scale enterprise operators in tertiary institutions in Cross River State, Nigeria. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that SSE operators should be encouraged to integrate both digital budgeting and digital investment strategies as a combined approach to ensure sustainable business growth, improved competitiveness, and long-term profitability.