Innovation environment and entrepreneurial intentions among undergraduate students in Nigeria: the moderating role of entrepreneurial education

Employment challenges among vulnerable groups, particularly women and youth, remain critical globally. Nigeria has Africa's largest youth population, with most engaged in insecure, low-income informal jobs. Despite mandatory entrepreneurship education since 2006, limited research examines how innovation environments influence entrepreneurial intentions among Nigerian undergraduates. This study investigates how innovation environments affect entrepreneurial intentions among Nigerian undergraduate students, examining the moderating role of entrepreneurship education using pooled data from 3,848 undergraduates across six Nigerian universities (2020/2021). Descriptive statistics profiled innovation environments, while logit regression examined relationships between entrepreneurial intentions and predictors including innovation environment index (mean = 0.538), entrepreneurship education exposure (74.6%), and controls like gender, parental business background (82.3%), and CGPA. Results revealed 53.1% of students operated in more innovative environments. Innovation environment showed insignificant effects (β = 0.041, p = 0.879), while entrepreneurship education positively influenced intentions (β = 0.504, p < 0.001). The interaction term (β = 0.635, p = 0.276) suggested moderation. Significant predictors included parental business engagement (β = 1.901, p < 0.001), student business engagement (β = 2.065, p < 0.001), and higher course levels (β = 0.338, p < 0.05). Findings underscore needs for integrated reforms combining enhanced innovation infrastructure, targeted curricula, and multi-stakeholder collaborations to transform youth unemployment into entrepreneurial opportunities supporting Nigeria's sustainable development goals for decent employment.