Innovative Business Idea Generation in Higher Education: The Interplay Between Entrepreneurship Centres and Economic Conditions

This study investigates how entrepreneurship centres in Nigerian universities contribute to innovative business idea generation among undergraduates, particularly under varying general economic conditions. Drawing on Ecological Systems Theory, the study conceptualises entrepreneurship centres as part of the microsystem and general economic conditions captured by inflation, insecurity, power instability, and high interest rates, as components of the exosystem. Primary data were collected from 269 final-year students across selected universities and analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that engagement with entrepreneurship centres significantly enhances students’ capacity for innovative idea generation. Furthermore, economic conditions independently influence idea generation and significantly moderate the relationship between entrepreneurship centre engagement and idea generation, weakening the positive effect. The model demonstrated moderate explanatory power (R² = 0.416) and good predictive relevance (Q² = 0.466), with robust internal consistency and validity indicators. These findings offer practical implications for policy and university administrators, emphasising the importance of resilient entrepreneurship support structures in higher education that can withstand economic volatility. While the results provide valuable insight for Nigerian institutions, the generalizability of the findings to other regions warrants further empirical validation.