VOL. 6, NO. 1, June, 2023. https://doi.org/10.26772/cijds-2023-06-01-03 55 ISSN 978-978-53693-8-9 SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AS PANACEA FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Muhammad Abdullahi Department of Public Administration, University of Maiduguri, Borno-Nigeria bb2them@gmail.com; +2348031329498 Abubakar Sadiq Sallau Department of Public Administration, College of Education and Legal Studies, Nguru, Yobe-Nigeria. abubakarsadiqsallau@gmail.com; +2348038860419 Abstract This paper examines social entrepreneurship as a way of attaining sustainable community development. It specifically examines the practice of social entrepreneurship and how the idea gained popularity in recent discourse, as well as the focus of the idea as the use of business ventures in addressing social problems, promoting economic growth and enhancing community development. The paper adopted a conceptual review method to reveal that social entrepreneurship is a hybrid approach that emerge to transform communities with deliberate thoughts of social responsibility and has the potential of addressing social, economic and environmental challenges of communities including poverty, climate change, unemployment, education, healthcare, and security among others. Sustainable development requires a sustained social entrepreneurship that presents a holistic approach to community’s growth and development. Social entrepreneurship is therefore a veritable tool for sustainable community development which every nation must aspire to promote, encourage and establish policies capable of enhancing it. Keywords: Community Development, Social Change, Social Entrepreneurship, Sustainability 1.0 Introduction The concept of social entrepreneurship is a relatively new concept, but the phenomenon is old in practice. It is gaining popularity in recent time. The concept however means different thing to different writers and professionals. Some writers exclusively consider social entrepreneurship as not-for-profit organizations starting for-profit ventures (Hood, 2005; Schamber, 2020; Peek, 2020). Others see the concept to mean anyone who starts a not-for-profit organization or business owners who integrate social responsibility into their operations (Dees, 1998; Ihejiamaizu & Udensi, 2017; Krizanova et al, 2018). In the context of this paper, social entrepreneurship is seen from the latter perspective, where social responsibility is emphasized in business ventures in order to address the social, economic, and environmental challenges of communities. The two concepts “community development” and “social entrepreneurship” are among the principal subjects of discourse in the business world, academic community and national development planning throughout this century. Social entrepreneurship mainly