NGO-promoted microcredit programs and women's empowerment in rural Bangladesh: quantitative and qualitative evidence

Journal of Developing Areas

Volumn 32, Issue 2, 1998, Pages 221-236

  Amin, Ruhul ^a   Becker, Stan ^b   Bayes, Abdul ^c  

^a MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^c JAHANGIRNAGAR UNIVERSITY   (Bangladesh)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EMPOWERMENT; GENDER ISSUES; MICROCREDIT; NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATION; OWMEN'S STATUS; WOMEN'S STATUS;

ARTICLE; ASIA; BANGLADESH; COMPARATIVE STUDY; DEVELOPING COUNTRY; ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT; ECONOMIC FACTORS; ECONOMICS; FEMALE; FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES; FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT; INCOME; INCOME GENERATION PROGRAMS--WOMEN; METHODOLOGY; NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS; ORGANIZATION; POVERTY; RESEARCH; RESEARCH REPORT; SOCIOECONOMICS; SOUTHERN ASIA; STUDIES; WOMEN IN DEVELOPMENT; WOMEN'S RIGHTS; WOMEN'S STATUS;

ASIA; BANGLADESH; COMPARATIVE STUDIES; DEVELOPING COUNTRIES; ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT; ECONOMIC FACTORS; FINANCIAL ACTIVITIES; INCOME GENERATION PROGRAMS--WOMEN; NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS; ORGANIZATIONS; POVERTY; RESEARCH METHODOLOGY; RESEARCH REPORT; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; SOUTHERN ASIA; STUDIES; WOMEN IN DEVELOPMENT; WOMEN'S STATUS;

ASIA; BANGLADESH; DEVELOPING COUNTRIES; ECONOMICS; FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT; INCOME; ORGANIZATIONS; POVERTY; RESEARCH; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; WOMEN; WOMEN'S RIGHTS;

BANGLADESH;

EID: 0031715877     PISSN: 0022037X     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Article

References (48)

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2. David Hulme and Paul Mosley, Finance against Poverty (New York: Routledge, 1996); David C. Korten, "Third Generation NGO Strategies: A Key to People-centered Development," World Development 15 (September 1987): 145-59; Norman Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development: Opportunities with Diminishing States and Expanding Markets," World Development 21 (April 1993): 515-30.
3. David Hulme and Paul Mosley, Finance against Poverty (New York: Routledge, 1996); David C. Korten, "Third Generation NGO Strategies: A Key to People-centered Development," World Development 15 (September 1987): 145-59; Norman Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development: Opportunities with Diminishing States and Expanding Markets," World Development 21 (April 1993): 515-30.
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7. Aditee N. Chowdhury, Let Grassroots Speak: People's Participation in Self-Help Groups, and NGOs in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1990); Ruhul Amin, Development Strategies and Socio-demographic Impact of Non-governmental Organizations: Evidence from Rural Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1997); David J. Lewis, "NGO-Government Interaction in Bangladesh," in Non-governmental Organizations and the State in Asia, ed. by John A. Farrington and David J. Lewis (New York: Routledge, 1993); Clarence Maloney and A. B. Sharfuddin Ahmed, Rural Savings and Credit in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1988).
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9. Aditee N. Chowdhury, Let Grassroots Speak: People's Participation in Self-Help Groups, and NGOs in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1990); Ruhul Amin, Development Strategies and Socio-demographic Impact of Non-governmental Organizations: Evidence from Rural Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1997); David J. Lewis, "NGO-Government Interaction in Bangladesh," in Non-governmental Organizations and the State in Asia, ed. by John A. Farrington and David J. Lewis (New York: Routledge, 1993); Clarence Maloney and A. B. Sharfuddin Ahmed, Rural Savings and Credit in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1988).
10. Aditee N. Chowdhury, Let Grassroots Speak: People's Participation in Self-Help Groups, and NGOs in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1990); Ruhul Amin, Development Strategies and Socio-demographic Impact of Non-governmental Organizations: Evidence from Rural Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1997); David J. Lewis, "NGO-Government Interaction in Bangladesh," in Non-governmental Organizations and the State in Asia, ed. by John A. Farrington and David J. Lewis (New York: Routledge, 1993); Clarence Maloney and A. B. Sharfuddin Ahmed, Rural Savings and Credit in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Limited, 1988).
11. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
12. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
13. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
14. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
15. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
16. Uphoff, "Grassroots Organizations and NGOs in Rural Development"; Piza E. Lopez and C. March, Gender Considerations in Economic Enterprises (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1990); Irene Tinker, Persistent Inequalities: Women and World Development (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990); Monindra Mukhopadyay and C. March, Income Generating Projects: A View from the Grassroots (Oxford, England: Oxfam, 1992); United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Micro Finance and Anti-poverty Strategies (New York: UNDP, 1997); Kim Young, Gender and Development: A Relational Approach (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988).
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19. Baltiwala, "Meaning of Women's Empowerment."
20. M. E. Hawkesworth, Beyond Oppression: Feminist Theory and Political Strategy (New York: Continuum, 1990); Margaret Schuler and Sakuntala Kadirgamar-Rajasingham, eds., Legal Literacy: A Tool for Women's Empowerment (New York: OEF International, distributed by UNIFEM, 1992).
21. M. E. Hawkesworth, Beyond Oppression: Feminist Theory and Political Strategy (New York: Continuum, 1990); Margaret Schuler and Sakuntala Kadirgamar-Rajasingham, eds., Legal Literacy: A Tool for Women's Empowerment (New York: OEF International, distributed by UNIFEM, 1992).
22. Minimalist credit is a stripped-down collateral-free credit program for the poor, which entails little or no evaluation of the merits of investments for which an applicant wishes to borrow and no technical or business assistance. In it, the burden of the selection process for loanees and loan recovery is shifted from the credit program to the peer groups of borrowers themselves. Although groups might give opinions on a member's purpose for borrowing, their ultimate acceptance of the member is based on an assessment of that person's likelihood of repaying, regardless of the viability of the proposed project. Group members are not necessarily jointly liable for each other's loans, but the group may not receive subsequent loans until all are paid up.
23. See Shahid R. Khandker, Baqui Khalily, and Zahed Khan, Is Grameen Bank Sustainable? (Washington, DC: Human Resources Development and Operations Policy Division, World Bank, 1994). A great number of NGOs and other agencies, both within Bangladesh and throughout the rest of the world, have adopted the approach used by Grameen Bank (GB) of forming a five-person or similar credit group and replicating GB's collateral-free loan strategy for poverty alleviation. This strategy has proven to be effective not only in loan recovery and loan recycling, but also in improving household output, income, and consumption. The result is the increasing acceptance of a self-sustaining poverty-alleviation strategy that is reaching beneficiaries in the thousands. Many NGOs in Bangladesh that have included income generation as one of their program agendas are following in the footsteps of GB's group-formation-based revolving loan program. By the mid-1990s, GB's own credit program for the poor in Bangladesh had covered about two million women.
24. Atiur Rahman, Impact of Grameen Bank Intervention on the Rural Power Structure, Research Report No. 61 (Washington, DC: World Bank, 1989).
25. Hulme and Mosley, Finance against Poverty.
26. "Bangladesh Fertility Survey" (National Institute of Population Research and Training, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 1989); John Cleland, J. Phillips, Ghulam M. Kamal, and Sajeda Amin, Bangladesh: The Determinants of Reproductive Change (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992).
27. "Bangladesh Fertility Survey" (National Institute of Population Research and Training, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 1989); John Cleland, J. Phillips, Ghulam M. Kamal, and Sajeda Amin, Bangladesh: The Determinants of Reproductive Change (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992).
28. Ruth B. Dixon, "The Roles of Rural Women: Female Seclusion, Economic Production, and Reproductive Choice," in Population and Development: The Search for Selective Intervention, ed. Ronald G. Ridker (Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1976); Karen O. Mason, "The Status of Women: Conceptual and Methodological Issues in Demographic Studies," Sociological Forum 1 (Spring 1986): 284-300.
29. Ruth B. Dixon, "The Roles of Rural Women: Female Seclusion, Economic Production, and Reproductive Choice," in Population and Development: The Search for Selective Intervention, ed. Ronald G. Ridker (Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1976); Karen O. Mason, "The Status of Women: Conceptual and Methodological Issues in Demographic Studies," Sociological Forum 1 (Spring 1986): 284-300.
30. Sidney R. Schuler and Syed M. Hashemi, "Credit Programs, Women's Empowerment, and Contraceptive Use in Rural Bangladesh," Studies in Family Planning 25 (March 1994): 65-76; Anne M. Goetz and Rathindra S. Gupta, "Who Takes the Credit? Gender, Power, and Control over Loan Use in Rural Credit Programmes in Bangladesh" (Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Palmer, Brighton, BNI9RE, U. K., 1994).
31. Sidney R. Schuler and Syed M. Hashemi, "Credit Programs, Women's Empowerment, and Contraceptive Use in Rural Bangladesh," Studies in Family Planning 25 (March 1994): 65-76; Anne M. Goetz and Rathindra S. Gupta, "Who Takes the Credit? Gender, Power, and Control over Loan Use in Rural Credit Programmes in Bangladesh" (Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Palmer, Brighton, BNI9RE, U. K., 1994).
32. Sidney R. Schuler and Syed M. Hashemi, "Rural Credit Programs and Women's Empowerment in Bangladesh," World Development 30 (April 1996): 635-53.
33. John Knodel, Napaporn Havanon, and Anthony Pramualratana, "Fertility Transition in Thailand: A Qualitative Analysis," Population and Development Review 10 (June 1984): 297-328; John C. Caldwell, Allan G. Hill, and Valerie J. Hull, eds., Micro-approaches to Demographic Research (New York: Routledge, 1988).
34. John Knodel, Napaporn Havanon, and Anthony Pramualratana, "Fertility Transition in Thailand: A Qualitative Analysis," Population and Development Review 10 (June 1984): 297-328; John C. Caldwell, Allan G. Hill, and Valerie J. Hull, eds., Micro-approaches to Demographic Research (New York: Routledge, 1988).
35. M. A. Rahman, People's Self-Development: Perspective on Participatory Action Research (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1994).
36. Amin, Development Strategies and Socio-demographic Impact.
37. See Deborath Balk, "Individual and Community Aspects of Women's Status and Fertility in Rural Bangladesh," Population Studies 48 (March 1994): 21-45. The present indices are, to a certain extent, similar to those of the 1994 study by Balk. Unlike the earlier study, however, this study uses sample data from wider areas in which five NGOs - Association for Social Advancement (ASA), Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS), Development Center International (DCI), Community Development Association (CDA), and Village Education Resource Center (VERC) - have microlevel development programs for the poor. It also uses a wider set of questions in the construction of empowerment indices and more control variables than were used in the earlier study.
38. Mead Cain, Syeda R. Khanam, and Shamsun Nahar, "Class, Patriarchy, and Women's Work in Bangladesh," Population and Development Review 5 (September 1979): 405-38.
39. Edward G. Carmines and Richard A. Zeller, Reliability and Validity Assessment (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1972); V. L. Green, and Edward G. Carmine, "Assessing the Reliability of Linear Composites," in Sociological Methodology, ed. K. F. Schuessler (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1979).
40. Edward G. Carmines and Richard A. Zeller, Reliability and Validity Assessment (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1972); V. L. Green, and Edward G. Carmine, "Assessing the Reliability of Linear Composites," in Sociological Methodology, ed. K. F. Schuessler (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1979).
41. Schuler and Hashemi, Credit Programs, Women's Empowerment, and Contraceptive Use; Ruhul Amin, Mohammed Kabir, and Jamir Chowdhury, "Impact of Poor Women's Participation in Credit-Based Self-Employment on Their Empowerment, Fertility, Contraceptive Use, and Fertility Desire in Rural Bangladesh," Pakistan Development Review 34 (Summer 1995): 93-119.
42. Schuler and Hashemi, Credit Programs, Women's Empowerment, and Contraceptive Use; Ruhul Amin, Mohammed Kabir, and Jamir Chowdhury, "Impact of Poor Women's Participation in Credit-Based Self-Employment on Their Empowerment, Fertility, Contraceptive Use, and Fertility Desire in Rural Bangladesh," Pakistan Development Review 34 (Summer 1995): 93-119.
43. Sarah G. White, Arguing with the Crocodile: Gender and Class in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1992); Tahrunnessa A. Abdullah and Sondra A. Zeidenstein, Village Women of Bangladesh - Prospects for Change: A Study (Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1982).
44. Sarah G. White, Arguing with the Crocodile: Gender and Class in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press, 1992); Tahrunnessa A. Abdullah and Sondra A. Zeidenstein, Village Women of Bangladesh - Prospects for Change: A Study (Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1982).
45. Cleland, Phillips, Kamal, and Amin, Bangladesh: Reproductive Change.
46. Ibid.
47. Abdullah, and Zeidenstein, Village Women of Bangladesh; Cain, Khanam, and Nahar, Class, Patriarchy, and Women's Work in Bangladesh.
48. Abdullah, and Zeidenstein, Village Women of Bangladesh; Cain, Khanam, and Nahar, Class, Patriarchy, and Women's Work in Bangladesh.