Entrepreneur is the person with a vision, with the drive and with the ability to bear risk. He is a pivot around which the entire industry rotates because it his foresight, knowledge, optimism, hard work, persistence and efficient management of the enterprises that brings success to the enterprises. He is the ‘spark plug’ who transforms the economy of a country. This shows how important an entrepreneur is in the economic system of the country. Hence, it is said that an economy is an effect for which entrepreneurship is the cause.

Entrepreneurship Development (ED) has, therefore, become a matter of great concern in all developing and under developed countries all over the world. It refers to the process of enhancing entrepreneurial skills and knowledge through structured training and institution-building programmes.

It has been rightly told that entrepreneurs are not born, they are made. Entrepreneurship does not emerge and develop of its own. Its emergence and development depends upon an environment in which entrepreneur can learn and discharge his assigned responsibility in an efficient manner. The government can also play a positive role in the emergence and development of entrepreneurship by providing training, incentives, concessions etc and by creating an environment conducive for the growth of entrepreneurship. All these help the entrepreneurs to undertake creative actions thus, entrepreneurial development is essentially a process in which persons are injected with motivational drives of achievement and insight to tackle uncertain and risky situations, especially in business enterprises. But the real problem is how to develop entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship development programmes (EDPs) are designed and developed to offer solutions to this problem.

Meaning of EDP

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EDP may be defined as a programme designed to help an individual in strengthening his entrepreneurial motive and in acquiring skills and capabilities necessary for playing his entrepreneurial role effectively. An EDP stresses on entrepreneurial motivation and behaviour. Programme which aims at providing informational or managerial inputs or focus on preparation of project without a touch of entrepreneurial motivation and behaviour is not considered as an EDP. EDP helps in inculcating entrepreneurial traits into a person, imparting the required knowledge, developing technical, financial, marketing and managerial skills and building the entrepreneurial attitude. EDP has been recognised as an effective human resource development tool. It is primarily for developing the first-generation entrepreneurs who on their own cannot become successful entrepreneurs. EDP through its continuous process of training and motivation help them to set up their own profitable enterprise and become successful entrepreneurs in their own right.

It is not merely a training programme, rather it is a comprehensive programme involving the following process:

i. It is a process which enhances the knowledge, skill and motivation of the potential entrepreneur.

ii. It is a process which instills entrepreneurial behaviour in the minds Of entrepreneur in their day-to-day activities, and

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iii. It is a process through which the potential entrepreneurs can develop and set up their own enterprise.

EDP by itself therefore, aims at achieving the specific objectives of the programmes through continuous training and motivation.