Digital Platforms Unlocking Market Access for Green Startups in Nigeria

Abstract

Green startups have become pivotal to addressing Nigeria’s sustainability challenges, yet their ability to scale is constrained by weak market access, low visibility, and structural barriers that undermine eco-innovation. Although digital platforms present transformative opportunities for overcoming these obstacles, empirical evidence on how they shape access for green enterprises in Nigeria is limited. This study therefore aimed to assess the impact of digital platform dynamics on the market access of green startups, anchored on Network effect theory, which posits that the value of platforms grows as user participation, engagement, and transactions expand. Employing a quantitative survey of 250 founders and managers, the study measured five proxies—number of active users, transaction volume, user growth rate, engagement metrics, and revenue per user against market access using multiple regression. Results revealed that number of active users (β = 0.21, p < 0.01), transaction volume (β = 0.17, p < 0.05), and engagement metrics (β = 0.23, p < 0.01) significantly enhanced market access, while user growth rate (β = 0.09, p > 0.05) and revenue per user (β = 0.07, p > 0.05) were not significant. Findings demonstrate that visibility, sustained interaction and transactional credibility drive market integration more than short-term monetization. The study recommends that green startups should emphasize community-building and user engagement, while policymakers, platform providers and investors must create enabling ecosystems that prioritize scale, trust and participation over immediate revenue.