Women and Microfinance: Why We Should Do More

Abstract

The last twenty years have shown that microfinance is a proven development tool capable of providing vast numbers of the poor, particularly women, with sustainable financial services to support their livelihoods. The 2005 State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign reports that microfinance institutions reached over ninety-two million clients and benefited 333 million family members. The success of microfinance represents a paradigm shift in the development industry: poor people are no longer recipients of charity, but customers to be served. Women make up approximately eighty-three percent, or sixtysix million, of reported microfinance clients. They not only make good clients — women have proven better at paying on time than men — but are also key drivers of development. Investing in women, literally, has proven the most effective way to increase individual family expenditures on health and education, improve nutrition and food security, protect against emergencies, and begin the slow process of tackling the gender inequalities that hinder development in so many countries around the world. This article examines the microfinance movement and the impact it has had on women who, in many ways, have been the reason behind its success. In developing countries, women play a pivotal role as risk managers and drivers of development, particularly in settings of severe poverty. Microfinance programs have enabled thousands of women to use small sums in creative and successful ways to develop livelihoods, improve their families’ well-being, and build up savings. However, microfinance has proven limited in its ability to really empower women, create upward mobility, and contribute to long-term economic growth. More is needed if we are to help the poor, especially