Assessing the Effect of ICT Adoption on SME Growth in Selected Food Manufacturing SMEs in Lusaka.

ICT adoption among food manufacturing SMEs is widely associated with improved operational performance; however, its measurable effects on firm growth within Zambia's food manufacturing sector remain empirically unexamined. This study investigated the relationship between ICT adoption and the growth of SMEs in the food manufacturing sector in Lusaka District, with specific reference to Zambika Bakery and Monginis Bakers Limited. Using a convergent mixed-methods design, quantitative data were collected from 104 employees through structured online questionnaires, while qualitative data were obtained from 27 participants through in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression through SPSS, while qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis using Atlas.ti.
Findings revealed that ICT adoption was dominated by foundational tools, specifically computers, mobile phones, and the internet, with limited uptake of advanced enterprise systems. The primary drivers of adoption were cost reduction (25.0%), improved customer service (22.1%), and increased efficiency (17.3%). The inferential analysis confirmed statistically significant positive relationships between ICT adoption and all four growth dimensions tested. ICT adoption explained 30.1 percent of variance in sales growth (r = .548, p < .001), 26.9 percent in competitiveness (r = .519, p < .001), 24.8 percent in market share (r = .498, p < .001), and 20.5 percent in productivity (r = .453, p < .001), with all four null hypotheses rejected. Qualitative findings confirmed improvements in market reach, customer satisfaction, and competitive positioning, while innovation and new product development remained largely unrealised benefits. The study concludes that ICT adoption generates moderate but measurable growth effects among food manufacturing SMEs in Lusaka, with benefits concentrated in market-facing outcomes rather than production-level transformation. The study contributes to theory by applying the Diffusion of Innovation, Critical Mass, and Total Factor Productivity frameworks to a food manufacturing SME context in Zambia, offers practical guidance for deepening strategic ICT integration, and provides policy-relevant evidence supporting targeted digital skills development and infrastructure investment in Zambia's food manufacturing sector.

competitiveness, food manufacturing, growth

1. Abu, N. (2016). Technology adoption in SMEs: A study using the UTAUT model. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 53(1), 1-10. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. African Development Bank. (2022). Zambia Economic Outlook 2022. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. African Union. (2019). Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa. African Union. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Bank of Zambia (BOZ). (2022). Annual Report 2022. Retrieved from BOZ website. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies. W.W. Norton & Company. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Cochran, W. G. (1977). Sampling Techniques (3rd ed.). Wiley. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches (4th ed.). SAGE Publications. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Daka, H., & Eliya, M. (2016). The role of SMEs in economic development: Case of Zambia. Journal of Business and Economic Development, 1(1), 1-8. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Fichman, R. G. (1992). Information technology diffusion: A review of empirical research. Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Information Systems, 195-206. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Fleming, J. (2011). Pragmatic research philosophy and mixed methods: A practical guide. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 5(4), 345-361. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Granovetter, M. (1978). Threshold models of collective behavior. American Journal of Sociology, 83(6), 1420-1443. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Gunasekaran, A., Subramanian, N., & Papadopoulos, T. (2019). Information and communication technology-enabled logistics management: A research agenda. International Journal of Production Research, 57(15-16), 4854-4870 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Kapopo, R. (2018). Challenges of ICT adoption in SMEs in Zambia. Journal of Business and Management, 20(2), 45-56. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

14. Koh, S. C. L., Gunasekaran, A., & Rajkumar, D. (2011). ERP II: The involvement, benefits and impediments of collaborative information sharing. Journal of Small Business Management, 49(3), 324-351. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

15. Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining Sample Size for Research Activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30(3), 607-610. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

16. Mutula, S. M., & Mostert, P. (2010). The role of ICTs in the development of SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa. International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology, 6(3), 3–16. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

17. Mukamanzi, M., & Ndikubwimana, T. (2018). ICT adoption in the food industry: A case study of Rwanda. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 55(1), 1-10. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

18. Mwanawina, I., Mwansa, F., & Munyinda, K. (2020). Challenges Facing SMEs in Zambia. International Journal of Business and Management, 15(3), 5-15. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

19. Mwinga, P. (2016). The impact of ICT on the growth of SMEs in Zambia. Zambian Journal of Economics, 5(1), 23-34. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

20. Plepsy, A. (2002). Economic Growth and Technological Innovation. Cambridge University Press. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

21. Rahman, H., & Ramos, I. (2017). The role of ICT in SME innovation and growth. Journal of Small Business Management, 55(1), 1-23. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

22. Smith, W., et al. (2018). The impact of ICT on quality management in food manufacturing SMEs. Journal of Food Science, 83(5), S1234-S1241. doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.14234 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

23. Tallon, P. P., Pinsonneault, A., & Kraemer, K. L. (2013). Information technology and the performance of the small and medium-sized enterprise. Journal of Small Business Management, 51(1), 1-26. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

24. Tarute, A., & Gatautis, R. (2013). ICT impact on SMEs performance. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 110, 1218-1225. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

25. Wahab, S. A., Rose, R. C., Uli, J., & Abdullah, H. (2020). The relationship between ICT adoption and SMEs’ performance in Malaysia. Journal of Small Business Management, 58(1), 1-20. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

26. World Bank. (2020). Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) finance. World Bank Group. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

27. World Bank. (2020). Zambia Country Overview. World Bank Publications. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

28. World Bank. (2022). Zambia Overview. World Bank Publications. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• Smart Iot Device for Weather And Health
• Merlarchive: A Web-Based Academic Hub for UDM With AI-Powered Natural Language Processing
• Enhanced Social Network Security System: Integrating Biometric Authentication for Improved User Verification and Privacy Protection
• Smart Budget Allocation in Public Policy: A Data-Driven Approach for Equitable Resource Distribution
• Decision Support System for Faculty Selection, Promotion, and Reclassification Using Predictive Analytics