Microfinance and women empowerment in Bangladesh: Impact in economic, social and political dimensions.
type: CreativeWork
description: This thesis empirically examines the impact of microfinance services on women’s economic, social and political empowerment in Bangladesh. Microfinance is alternative financial services for poor people, predominantly for women as they are more poverty-stricken and discriminated in Bangladesh. These services are more likely to be flexible than formal financial services so that poor women can afford and use for productive activities which can generate income either for them or for their families. Thus, women may create a chance to uplift themselves from current deprived conditions in many aspects include financial, familial, social and public life. Therefore, this thesis aims to assess whether microfinance contributes to women’s empowerment, specifically in economic, social and political dimensions. A sample of 316 women clients of two microfinance institutions, Grameen Bank and BRAC in Bangladesh were selected. 285 questionnaires were completed and returned by the respondents and that constituted the data for the study. Several data analysis methods were deployed to analyse the collected data. It has been found that women in Bangladesh are empowered economically to a certain extent by the microfinance services. Economic empowerment was measured through women’s household income, savings and control over finances. Regarding this dimension of empowerment, findings of this thesis suggests the relationship of the amount of loan with household income, savings and control over finances, nevertheless, there is no relationship found with women’s geographic areas (rural, semi-urban and urban). Women’s engagement with income-generating activities and their long-term membership escalate the probability of increasing household income. In terms of women’s savings, findings show that the larger the amount of loan, the more the probability of increasing their savings. Increase in household income and increase in women’s savings are added as independent variables to assess their impac…
abstract: This thesis empirically examines the impact of microfinance services on women’s economic, social and political empowerment in Bangladesh. Microfinance is alternative financial services for poor people, predominantly for women as they are more poverty-stricken and discriminated in Bangladesh. These services are more likely to be flexible than formal financial services so that poor women can afford and use for productive activities which can generate income either for them or for their families. Thus, women may create a chance to uplift themselves from current deprived conditions in many aspects include financial, familial, social and public life. Therefore, this thesis aims to assess whether microfinance contributes to women’s empowerment, specifically in economic, social and political dimensions. A sample of 316 women clients of two microfinance institutions, Grameen Bank and BRAC in Bangladesh were selected. 285 questionnaires were completed and returned by the respondents and that constituted the data for the study. Several data analysis methods were deployed to analyse the collected data. It has been found that women in Bangladesh are empowered economically to a certain extent by the microfinance services. Economic empowerment was measured through women’s household income, savings and control over finances. Regarding this dimension of empowerment, findings of this thesis suggests the relationship of the amount of loan with household income, savings and control over finances, nevertheless, there is no relationship found with women’s geographic areas (rural, semi-urban and urban). Women’s engagement with income-generating activities and their long-term membership escalate the probability of increasing household income. In terms of women’s savings, findings show that the larger the amount of loan, the more the probability of increasing their savings. Increase in household income and increase in women’s savings are added as independent variables to assess their impac…
author: Mostafa, Abm
language: eng
keywords: Microfinance, Empowerment, Women, Bangladesh
date published: 2020-01-01T08:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T03:49:55Z
provider: University of Plymouth
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Plymouth