Thesis on Empower Women Through Micro Credit Programmes

Daughters of the women in small businesses get a chance to go to school and get an education due to the extra money the mother is making.  When women bring home money they are now a vital contributor to the family. Women increase the education for their daughters and sons due to the money being brought home from their business. Education is crucial to financial services which means a faster economic growth in their community and country. When the mother bring home the money she is affecting the family by providing more provisions, her children's education, and the economy of the all country all

In both developing and emerging economies, microfinance has vastly and increasingly been seen as one of the most important means for enhancing the lives of the poor and therefore a major tool for economic and social development mostly in rural areas. Lately, contrary to this widespread belief, critics have raised eyebrows against this growing popularity of microfinance as a major tool for enhancing economic development. Contrary to belief, they are of the opinion that microfinance is a ‘make-belief’ that is hindering economic and social development rather than enhancing it.

269). There is no easy way for those with little money to begin earning interest on savings or obtain loans with reasonable interest rates: the banking community is failing the poorest people (Banerjee & Duflo, 2012, p. 269). Also, Banerjee and Duflo (2012) assert that medical and agricultural insurance are not favored by the poor in spite of the fact that they could benefit greatly from such products (269). Their proposed solutions come in the form of microcredit (to provide access to more reasonable loans), electronic money transfer systems (to reduce the fixed costs of saving), and rewarding people for making good financial decisions (either via markets or the government if needed) (Banerjee & Duflo, 2012, p. 270). The incentives could even be something unrelated, such as bed nets, which then help the recipients in more than one way (Banerjee & Duflo, 2012, p. 270). This would need to be coupled with government regulation so that unscrupulous individuals wouldn’t have a way to easily game the system (Banerjee & Duflo, 2012, p. 270).

Although poverty and inequality are two different things, inequality can impact poverty by preventing a particular group from accessing resources to support themselves. According to the United Nations Social Policy and Development Division, “inequalities in income distribution and access to productive resources, basic social services, opportunities, markets, and information have been on the rise worldwide, often causing and exacerbating poverty.” (World Scouting, 1) This company also points out that gender discrimination is the major source of causing poverty. For example, women in Peru have 5 years of learning while men have 7 years. (Melamed, 6) Given this, women are more vulnerable to poverty due to its gender and social status within the

Women poverty is directly related to the absence of economic opportunities and self-sufficiency, lack of access to

Poverty has stricken many developing nations. However, there are many ways to limit things like this from occurring, micro-loans being one of those things. It is apparent that women in developing countries are empowered by micro-loans. Micro-loans are a small amount of money given to small businesses. Micro-loans help make women more independent and help them not rely on their husbands for money. It helps these women in poverty get their kids and themselves an education with the money they receive. Additionally, micro-loans make it possible for women starting a business, in order to make more money. There are many benefits for women receiving micro-loans.

For Victoria’s case, she needs the money to buy more potatoes and quinoa to make sure her shop has all the proper vegetables (Kiva.org). If Victoria can keep her shop well stocked, she may attract more customers and make more money. By earning more money, Victoria can improve her quality of life. According to Plan Canada “microfinancing can lead to improved access to clean water and better sanitation while also providing better access to health care” (plancanada.ca). Research shows that microfinance loans are better suited for women because they are less likely to miss payments on their loan and it helps them feel empowered (plancanada.ca). By lending to Victoria, she will feel empowered and will be able to support herself and her family. Also, because she is a woman, she is less likely to miss

About 1.4 billion human beings around the world-one in five people- are at risk of absolute poverty. Although the economy has sustained a slow recuperation in 2012, poverty rates for most groups were identical from 2011, leaving poverty among women and children at or near historically high levels. Poverty rates for women and children are higher than poverty rates for men and especially higher for women of color, women who are the head of the family, foreign-born, and women 65 and older living alone. The big gender gap has been unchanged for the decade, undermining women’s ability to support themselves and their families. Difference in rates of employment and single parenthood, education and age groups play key roles in such gender gaps in poverty.

Micro credit is the process of helping the “poorest of the poor” obtain loans. Since big time banks rarely help people who need help acquiring loans, micro credit is another source that makes it possible for the lower class to achieve that. They focus on they call the “real economy,” where they are on personal relationships with their clients. They want them to succeed and help their clients change their own life. Compared to the big banks, they are not looking to make huge amount of interest back off their loan (paper chasers).

Microfinancing produces many benefits for poverty stricken, or low- income households. One of the benefits is that it is very accessible. Banks today simply won’t extend loans to those with little to no assets, and generally don’t engage in small size loans typically associated with microfinancing. Through microfinancing small loans are produced and accessible. Microfinancing is based on the philosophy that even small amounts of credit can help end the cycle of poverty. Another benefit produced from the microfinancing initiative is that it presents opportunities, such as extending education and jobs. Families receiving microfinancing are less likely to pull their children out of school for economic reasons. As well, in relation to employment,

The programme has been lengthened and modified, enduring several political transitions. A growing number of developing countries have introduced (CCT) programs – poverty alleviation programs that provide funds to adult women in households in exchange for a certain actions such as children’s school attendance, school performance, and preventive health care visits (Rawlings and Rubio 2003: Maluccio and Flores). This was giving women finical power, which weren’t always in the favorable with the husbands, which led to violence and households having issues. Women might become creditworthy and hence more susceptible to getting into debt, and subsidy growths their dependence rather than promoting a livelihood. The PROGRESA CCT programme incorporates stated principles of: gender equality, the importance of improving daughters and mothers' educational levels, and of women's personal development, leadership and citizenship. Only two programme evaluations have pursued to understand gender impacts on all household members, rather than focusing specifically on the

80% of micro-loans in developing countries are made to women. A large majority of people living in developing countries are in poverty. Most of these people were living off of a dollar a day. Micro-loans have been created to help the people that need them. Women in developing countries are empowered by micro loans and they use that power to help their families, economy and ,gain more recognition in their culture.

“The concept of the ‘feminization of poverty’ has meant three distinct things: that women compared to men have a higher incidence of poverty; that women’s poverty is more severe than men’s; and that the incidence of poverty among women is increasing compared to that of men. in the recent year and the development debates are continued on how to approach this matter. ”( Carolina J. Wennerholm 2002,9)

Within the segment, small enterprises led the demand for financing: around Indian rupees 6.42 trillion ($116 billion), approximately 74 percent of the total requirement. This was mostly due to unmet working capital and investment finance needs. Micro enterprises with a requirement of Indian rupees 2.05 trillion ($37 billion), accounted for 24 percent. Most of this requirement was largely focused around working capital needs. Women-owned medium-scale enterprises, which account for 0.01 percent of the total MSME sector had finance requirements of around Indian rupees 0.21 trillion ($4 billion), about 2 percent of the total requirement. Microfinance loans for seed capital allow women borrowers build credit habits and become more bankable. Thus, microfinance plays a key role in expanding access to finance for low-income women aspiring

Microfinance is a widespread concept across the world and through its various services the lives of the poor population have been uplifted