THE EFFECT OF MICROFINANCE SERVICES ON POVERTY REDUCTION: ANALYSIS OF EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE IN SRI LANKAN PERSPECTIVES

J. A. Prasansha Kumari, S. M. Ferdous Azam, Siti Khalidah

Abstract


Microfinance has been identified as a powerful tool for reducing poverty in the developing counties after won the Nobel Prize for Grameen microcredit program, Bangladesh in 1986. With the rapidly spared of microfinance in the world, the researcher also paid attention to microfinance related studies. There are positive and negative impacts of microfinance on alleviating poverty in the world. This article presents the review of empirical studies that have conducted to identify the impact of microfinance on reducing poverty in the world and Sri Lanka. The review revealed that the majority of existing studies were recognized the positive relationship between microfinance and poverty and most of these studies summarized outcomes that microfinance‘s potential in reducing poverty. Few of them were realized that there were mixed effects of microfinance on poverty reduction. Furthermore, the wealth of empirical evidence available to investigate the relationship of microcredit and micro-savings on poverty alleviation while few studies had identified the impact of all elements of microfinance on poverty reduction.

 

JEL: G2; G21

 

Article visualizations:

Hit counter

DOI

Keywords


microfinance, poverty reduction, micro credit, micro savings, women empowerment

Full Text:

PDF

References


Al-Shami, S. S. A., Majid, I. B. A., Rashid, N. A., & Hamid, M. S. R. B. A. (2014). Conceptual framework: The role of microfinance on the wellbeing of poor people cases studies from Malaysia and Yemen. Asian Social Science, 10(1), 230.

Al-Shami, S. S. A., Razali, M. M., Majid, I., Rozelan, A., & Rashid, N. (2016). The effect of microfinance on women’s empowerment: Evidence from Malaysia. Asian Journal of Women's Studies, 22(3), 318-337.

Asian Development Bank (2000). Finance for the Poor: Microfinance Development Strategy retrieved from https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/institutional-document/32094/financepolicy.pdf

Awojobi, N. O. (2013). Microfinance as a strategy for poverty reduction: The Nigerian experience. Berlin, Germany: Berlin School of Economics and Law.

Awojobi, O. (2011). Microfinancing for poverty reduction and economic development: A case for Nigeria. International Research Journal of Finance and Economics, (72), 159-168.

Bakhtiari, S. (2006). Microfinance and poverty reduction: some international evidence. International Business and Economics Research Journal, 5(12), 65.

Balamurugan, V. (2018). Emergence of micro finance institutions and role for cluster development. Paripex-indian journal of research, 7(6).

Banerjee, A., Duflo, E., Glennerster, R., & Kinnan, C. (2015). The miracle of microfinance? Evidence from a randomized evaluation. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 7(1), 22-53.

Berg, C. N., & Shahe Emran, M. (2018). Microfinance and vulnerability to seasonal famine in a rural economy: Evidence from Monga in Bangladesh. Available at SSRN 2989732.

Bisai, S., & Mazumdar, D. (2019). An Analysis of Poverty and Inequality among the Members of SHGs in West Bengal, India. In Handbook of Research on Microfinancial Impacts on Women Empowerment, Poverty, and Inequality (pp. 226-246). IGI Global.

Boachie, C. (2019). The effect of microfinance on poverty reduction in developing economies. In Socio-Economic Development: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 575-591). IGI Global.

Boateng, G. O., Boateng, A. A., & Bampoe, H. S. (2015). Microfinance and poverty reduction in Ghana: Evidence from policy beneficiaries. Review of Business & Finance Studies, 6(1), 99-108.

Coleman, B. E. (2006). Microfinance in Northeast Thailand: Who benefits and how much?. World development, 34(9), 1612-1638.

Copestake, J., Bhalotra, S., & Johnson, S. (2001). Assessing the impact of microcredit: A Zambian case study. Journal of Development Studies, 37(4), 81-100.

Dichter, T. W. (1999). NGOs in microfinance: Past, present and future. Microfinance in Africa, 2, 12-37.

Ebimobowei, A., Sophia, J. M., & Wisdom, S. (2012). An analysis of microfinance and poverty reduction in Bayelsa State of Nigeria. Kuwait Chapter of Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review, 33(842), 1-20.

Garson, J. (2001). Microfinance and anti-poverty strategies: a donor perspective. GATE-ESCHBORN-, (1), 12-13.

Garson, Jose. Microfinance and Anti-Poverty Strategies. A Donor Perspective. UNCDF.

http://www.undp.org/uncdf/pubs/mf/mf-chap1.htm#a

Gibbons, David, Benjamin Quiñones, Joe Remenyi, and H. D. Seibel. " Microfinance for and by the Poor: Lessons from Experience." Microfinance and Poverty Alleviation: Case Studies from Asia and the Pacific. Pinter, London and New York (2000): 253-269.

Gichuru, W., Ojha, S., Smith, S., Smyth, A. R., & Szatkowski, L. (2019). Is microfinance associated with changes in women’s well-being and children’s nutrition? A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ open, 9(1), e023658.

Han, J., Wang, J., & Ma, X. (2019). Effects of Farmers’ Participation in Inclusive Finance on Their Vulnerability to Poverty: Evidence from Qinba Poverty-Stricken Area in China. Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, 55(5), 998-1013.

Hassan, A., & Saleem, S. (2017). An Islamic microfinance business model in Bangladesh: Its role in alleviation of poverty and socio-economic well-being of women. Humanomics, 33(1), 15-37.

Herath, H. M. W. A., Guneratne, L. H. P., & Sanderatne, N. (2015). Impact of microfinance on women's empowerment: a case study on two microfinance institutions in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka Journal of Social Sciences, 38(1), 51-61.

Johnson, S., & Rogaly, B. (1997). Microfinance and poverty reduction. Oxfam.

Kabasakal, A., & Malik, A. (2019). Abandoning Microfinance in Turkey: An Explanatory Study. Uluslararası Ekonomik Araştırmalar Dergisi, 5(1).

Kabeer, N. (2005). Is microfinance a 'magic bullet' for women's empowerment? Analysis of findings from South Asia. Economic and Political weekly, 4709-4718.

Kasali, T. A., Ahmad, S. A., & Lim, H. E. (2015). The role of microfinance in poverty alleviation: Empirical evidence from South-West Nigeria. Asian Social Science.

Kebede, M., & Regassa, N. (2019). Women’s Access to Microfinance Services in Southern Ethiopia: Assessing the Promises, Impacts, Challenges and Gaps. In Efficiency, Equity and Well-Being in Selected African Countries (pp. 149-165). Springer, Cham.

Khandker, S. (2001, February). Does micro-finance really benefit the poor? Evidence from Bangladesh. In Asia and Pacific Forum on Poverty: Reforming Policies and Institutions for Poverty Reduction (Vol. 14).

Khandker, S. R. (1998). Fighting poverty with microcredit: experience in Bangladesh. Oxford University Press.

Khandker, S. R. (2005). Microfinance and poverty: Evidence using panel data from Bangladesh. The World Bank Economic Review, 19(2), 263-286.

Kim, N. T., Long, L. H., & Sang, N. M. (2018). Evaluating the Efficiency of Microfinance Institutions in Vietnam and the Impact of this Efficiency on Poverty Reduction. In Global Tensions in Financial Markets (pp. 167-181). Emerald Publishing Limited..

Ledgerwood, J. (1999). Microfinance handbook: Sustainable banking with the poor. Institutional and Financial Perspectives.

McCulloch, N., & Baulch, B. (2000). Simulating the impact of policy upon chronic and transitory poverty in rural Pakistan. The Journal of Development Studies, 36(6), 100-130.

Micro Finance Industry Report Sri Lanka (2009). Retrieved from http://www.microfinance.lk/publications/1254465920.pdf

Microfinance Barometer, (2018), 9th Edition, Retrieved from http://www.convergences.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/bmf_2018_en_vfinale.pdf

Morduch, J., & Haley, B. (2002). Analysis of the effects of microfinance on poverty reduction. New York: NYU Wagner Working Paper, 1014.

Mtamakaya, C., Jeremia, D., Msuya, S., & Stray-Pedersen, B. (2018). Microcredit and Its Impact on Women’s Empowerment: Some Evidence from Moshi, Tanzania. Science Journal of Business and Management, 6(3), 66.

International Labour Organization. Women in the informal sector and their access to

microfinance. Available: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/ent/papers/women.htm

Morduch, J., & Haley, B. (2002). Analysis of the effects of microfinance on poverty reduction. New York: NYU Wagner Working Paper, 1014.

Otero, M. (1999). Bringing development back, into microfinance. Journal of Microfinance/ESR Review, 1(1), 2.

Parker, J. and D. Pearce. 2001. Microfinance, Grants, and Non-Financial Responses to

Poverty Reduction: Where Does Microcredit Fit? Consultative Group Focus Note No. 20. Washington, DC. http://nt1.ids.ac.uk/cgap/wnewlib.htm

Parker, J. and Pearce, D. (2001). Microfinance, Grants, and Non –Financial Responses to Poverty Reduction: Where Does Micro credit Fit? Consultative Group to Assist the Poor Focus Note NO. 20. Washington, DC.

Patel, R., Patel, M., & Patel, N. (2018). Impact of microfinance on poor women: Lessons from North Gujarat. Prabandhan: Indian Journal of Management, 11(2).

Pimhidzai, O., Tong, K., Anantavrasilpa, R., Popovic, A., Mel, S., & Sanchez Martin, M. E. (2019). Microfinance and Household Welfare: Cambodia Policy Note.

Pitt, M. M., Khandker, S. R., & Cartwright, J. (2006). Empowering women with micro finance: Evidence from Bangladesh. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 54(4), 791-831.

Rahman, Aminur (1999). Micro-credit Initiatives for Equitable and Sustainable

Development: Who Pays? World Development. 27 (1) p. 67-82.

Rathnayake, K. M. N. D., Fernando, P. I. N., & Fernando, A. G. N. K. (2019). Impact of Microfinance Services on Growth of Micro Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (With Special Reference to Micro Small Medium Scale Enterprises in Kalutara District).

Remenyi, J. (2000). Poverty reduction and urban renewal through urban agriculture and microfinance: A case study of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Urban Agriculture and Horticulture-The linkage with Urban Planning, Berlin.

Robinson, M. (2001). The microfinance revolution: Sustainable finance for the poor. World Bank Publications

Rosenberg, M., Jules, R., Luetke, M., Kianersi, S., Nelson, E., & Jean-Louis, F. (2019). Health Education Training Embedded in a Microfinance Platform Associated with Safer Sexual Behavior in Haitian Women. AIDS and behavior, 1-11.

Samer, S., Majid, I., Rizal, S., Muhamad, M. R., & Rashid, N. (2015). The impact of microfinance on poverty reduction: Empirical evidence from Malaysian perspective. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 195, 721-728.

Shamim, M. A. (2019). Effect of Microcredit of Grameen Bank on Well-Being of Borrower Households: A Study in The Rural Area at Adamdighi Upazila in Bogra District of Bangladesh.

Shamim, M. A. (2018). Impact of Grameen Bank Microcredit on Standard of Living in Rural Poor Women in Sariakandi Upazila of Bogra District. American Journal of Trade and Policy, 5(2), 87-94.

Sharma, N. (2000). Research on Risk and Vulnerability of Rural Women in Nepal. CMF, Nepal.

Silva, I. D. (2012). Evaluating the impact of microfinance on savings and income in Sri Lanka: Quasi-experimental approach using propensity score matching. Margin: The Journal of Applied Economic Research, 6(1), 47-74.

Sinha, M., Mahapatra, S. S., Dutta, A., & Sengupta, P. P. (2019). Microfinance and Women Empowerment: An Empirical Analysis. In Handbook of Research on Micro financial Impacts on Women Empowerment, Poverty, and Inequality (pp. 52-64). IGI Global.

Terano, R., & Mohamed, Z. (2017). Malaysian Muslim Consumers' Confidence in Purchasing Japanese Food Products in Selangor. Japanese Journal of Agricultural Economics, 19, 43-47.

Thibbotuwawa, R. M. M. I., Printhika, B. L. D. S., Jayasinghe-Mudalige, U. K., & Udugama, J. M. M. (2012). Impact of microfinance on household welfare: Assessing the case of Samurdhi Program in Sri Lanka (No. 423-2016-27062).

Tilakaratna, G., Wickramasinghe, U., & Kumara, T. (2005). Microfinance in Sri Lanka: A household-level analysis of outreach and impact on poverty. Colombo: Institute of Policy Studies.

UNDF (2005). International year of MicroCredit 2005, Retrieved from https://www.microfinancegateway.org/sites/default/files/mfg-en-paper-international-year-of-microcredit-2005-final-report-may-2006_0.pdf

UNICEF (1997). Give Us Credit. Division of Evaluation, Policy and Planning.

Wright, G. (2000). Microfinance systems: Designing quality financial services for the poor. Zed Books.




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejefr.v0i0.654

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2019 J. A. Prasansha Kumari, S. M. Ferdous Azam, Siti Khalidah

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

The research works published in this journal are free to be accessed. They can be shared (copied and redistributed in any medium or format) and\or adapted (remixed, transformed, and built upon the material for any purpose, commercially and\or not commercially) under the following terms: attribution (appropriate credit must be given indicating original authors, research work name and publication name mentioning if changes were made) and without adding additional restrictions (without restricting others from doing anything the actual license permits). Authors retain the full copyright of their published research works and cannot revoke these freedoms as long as the license terms are followed.

Copyright © 2016 - 2023. European Journal of Economic and Financial Research (ISSN 2501-9430) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing GroupAll rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library. All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms. All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and standards formulated by Budapest Open Access Initiative (2002), the Bethesda Statement on Open Access Publishing (2003) and  Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities (2003) and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyrights of the published research works are retained by authors.