John A. Brett.

Human organization, Vol. 65, No. 1, Spr 2006, pp. 8-19.

Having borrowed money from a microfinance organization to start a small business, many women in El Alto, Bolivia are unable to generate sufficient income to repay their loans and so must draw upon household resources. Working from the women's experience and words, this article explores the range of factors that condition and constrain their success as entrepreneurs. The central theme is that while providing the poor access to credit is currently very popular in development circles, the social and structural context within which some women operate so strongly constrains their productive activity that they realize a net income loss at the household level instead of the promised benefits of entrepreneurship. This paper explores the social and structural realities in which women seek out and accept debt beyond their capacity to repay from the proceeds of their business enterprise. By examining some of the "hidden costs" of microfinance participation, this paper argues for a shift from evaluation on outcomes at the institutional level to outcomes at the household level to identify the forces and factors that condition women's success as micro-entrepreneurs. While there has been much discussion on the benefits of microcredit lending and increasing critique of it on both ideological and substantive grounds, there have been few ethnographically informed studies on consequences to users. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved) (journal abstract)

Klaus Abbink, Bernd Irlenbusch and Elke Renner.

Economic Inquiry, Vol. 44, No. 4, October 2006, pp. 614-628.

Microfinance programs provide poor people with small loans given to jointly liable self-selected groups. Follow-up loans provide incentives to repay. We experimentally investigate the influence of those features on strategic default. Each group member invests in an individual risky project, whose outcome is known only to the individual investor. Subjects decide whether to contribute to group repayment or not. Only those with successful projects can contribute. The experiment ends if too few repay. We investigate group size and social ties effects and observe robust high repayment rates. Group lending outperforms individual lending. Self-selected groups show high but less stable contributions.

Lisa J. Servon.

Economic Development Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 4, November 2006, pp. 351-367.

U.S. microenterprise programs provide business training, small amounts of credit ($35,000 or less), or both to businesses with five or fewer employees. As the microenterprise field nears the end of its second decade in the United States, experts and practitioners agree that the field is in a difficult place; there appears to be relatively widespread agreement on the nature of the problems, which include a lack of standardized data, decreasing funding from some key sectors, increased competition, and difficulty in reaching the target market. The author argues that if the microenterprise field does not make some significant changes, it will neither sustain itself nor approach its potential. Strategies to address these challenges fall into three broad categories: restructuring, innovation, and accreditation and standardization.

Brett E. Coleman.

World Development, Vol. 34, No. 9, September 2006, pp. 1612-1638.

This paper evaluates the outreach and impact of two microfinance programs in Thailand, controlling for endogenous self-selection and program placement. Results indicate that the wealthier villagers are significantly more likely to participate than the poor. Moreover, the wealthiest often become program committee members and borrow substantially more than rank-and-file members. However, local information on creditworthiness is also used to select members. The programs positively affect household welfare for committee members, but impact is insignificant for rank-and-file members. Policy recommendations include vigilance in targeting the poor, publicly disseminating the program rules and purpose, and introducing and enforcing eligibility criteria.

Nidhiya Menon.

Journal of development studies, Vol. 42, No. 8, Nov 2006, pp. 1379-1400.

This paper studies the benefits of participation in micro-finance programs, where benefits are measured in terms of the ability to smooth the effect of seasonal shocks that cause consumption fluctuations. It is shown that although membership in these programs is an effective instrument in combating inter-seasonal consumption differences, there is a threshold level of length of participation beyond which benefits begin to diminish. Returns from membership are modelled using an Euler equation approach. Fixed effects non-linear least squares estimation of parameters using data from 24 villages of the Grameen Bank suggests that returns to participation, as measured by the ability to smooth seasonal shocks, begin to decline after approximately two years of membership. This implies that membership alone no longer has a mitigating marginal effect on seasonal shocks to per capita consumption after four years of participation. Such patterns suggest that the ability to smooth consumption as a function of length of membership, need not accrue indefinitely in a linear fashion.; Reprinted by permission of Frank Cass & Co. Ltd.

Raghuram Rajan.

Finance and Development, Vol. 43, No. 1, March 2006, pp. 56-57.

Thierry van Bastelaer and Howard Leathers.

World Development, Vol. 34, No. 10, October 2006, pp. 1788-1807.

This paper identifies factors associated with high repayment performance by collectively liable groups of seed borrowers in Southern Zambia. The results suggest that some factors facilitating collective action within seed groups, such as their size, are associated with a higher repayment performance. In addition, community-based cognitive social capital, proxied here by generalized trust, is shown to be strongly associated with repayment performance. This suggests that attitudes and values shared by community members create an environment in which seed borrowers honor their engagements, although church participation and fear of witchcraft can weaken mutual monitoring of loan use and peer pressure for repayment.

Nimal A. Fernando.

Asian Development Bank, 2006

Presents recommendations to policy makers to ensure its long-term sustainability and enhanced access of poor people to affordable microcredit.

Kathryn Imboden.

Journal of International Affairs, Vol. 58, No. 2, 2005, pp. 65-86.

Denise Anthony.

American Sociological Review, Vol. 70, No. 3, June 2005, pp. 496-515.

Cooperation to produce collective goods is widespread in society, & yet so is its failure. Theorists have identified competing mechanisms for facilitating group cooperation, including group identity, sanctions & reciprocity. Here I use empirical data to explore how these mechanisms influence cooperation in the natural laboratory of microcredit borrowing groups. Microcredit makes loans to high-risk borrowers through borrowing groups in which individuals' access to credit is dependent on the behavior of other members of the group, thereby creating a social dilemma for members & an opportunity to observe cooperation in real world groups. By analyzing both collective goods production (loans) & compliance (repayment), I find that the competing mechanisms have differential effects. Group identity, sanctions & reciprocity are all associated with more borrowing in the group. Only reciprocity, however limits loan delinquency & is associated with group longevity, suggesting both that collective goods production is a distinct process from group compliance over time, & that reciprocity may be an important mechanism in both processes. I discuss how these findings contribute to our understanding of group cooperation, as well as the implications for the related theoretical concept of embeddedness. Tables, Figures, Appendixes, References. Adapted from the source document.

John Weiss and Heather Montgomery.

Oxford Development Studies, Vol. 33, No. 3-4, September-December 2005, pp. 391-416.

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are often seen by aid practitioners as a manifestly effective means of improving the position of the poor. Despite this widely held view, detailed research studies have been much more guarded about the impact of MFIs. In particular, several studies have raised doubts about the effectiveness of MFIs in reaching the "core poor." This paper surveys the evidence from Asia and Latin America and contrasts experiences in the two regions. Studies on the former have been carried out more "rigorously," but in both regions the evidence that microfinance is reaching the core poor is very limited.

Anonymous

Economist, Vol. 377, No. 8451, November 5-11 2005, pp. +.

This 14-page supplemental section contains seven articles focusing on global microfinance or "financial services for poor people in developing countries" and how they differ from the Western financial services which include "access to interest bearing savings accounts, mortgages at reasonable rates, abundant consumer credit, insurance at premiums that reflect the risk of losses, cheap ways of transferring money, and innumerable sources of capital for funding a business." Section concludes that the poor are "badly served" with no access to a safe and high costs for sending money home to their families. However, savings, credit and insurance services are beginning to improve for the poor with the help of global organizations like ACCION. Section follows the history of microfinance, its changes over the years and projected growth in the future.

Bill Lucarelli.

Journal of Contemporary Asia, Vol. 35, No. 1, 2005, pp. 78-86.

Argues that microcredit is not the solution to poverty, but just one aspect of a broad range of options & requirements. Following a brief historical overview, claims that microfinance programs have a lasting impact on poverty alleviation for the poorest poor, redress gender discrimination & oppression, & are self-financing & sustainable are challenged. Although microcredit does have a key role in addressing poverty, caution should be taken in relying too heavily on these programs to cure complex developmental problems. Tables, References. J. Zendejas

Roy Prosterman.

Far Eastern Economic Review, Vol. 168, No. 4, April 2005, pp. 43-45.

The United Nations Millennium Project has advocated the reduction of both extreme poverty and hunger by half or more by the year 2015, using the year 1990 as a baseline. These goals have been seen by many as being overly modest - especially in the number of years allowed for the targeted reduction of poverty. But there are even more problems with the project's goals, which are summarized in its lengthy report "Investing in Development." The report omits or glosses over some of the greatest challenges to lowering the poverty rate. One of the most serious issues omitted in the report is the fact that it is lack of access to land ownership that ensures that many people will remain in poverty and that there is little that can be done with this.

G. Nguyen Tien Hung.

Finance and Development, Vol. 41, No. 2, June 20054, pp. 41-43.

Elizabeth Littlefield and Richard Rosenberg.

Finance and Development, Vol. 41, No. 2, June 20054, pp. 38-40.

Khandakar Q. Elahi and Constantine P. Danopoulos.

Journal of Political and Military Sociology, Vol. 32, No. 1, summer 2004, pp. 61-77.

Microfinance is emerging as an integral part of the new development paradigm, described by the phrase "participation & development." Although the idea has become quite popular among donor agencies, development practitioners, & academicians, theoretical premises on which this idea is founded seem entirely unexamined. Accordingly, this article investigates the academic merits, as well as potential consequences, of this popular poverty alleviating model from the supply-side perspective & asks a provocative question: Do the microfinance ventures have features that suggest that the establishment of this new finance industry in the Third World countries might further complicate their pervasive poverty problems? The answer to this question appears to be affirmative. First, the microfinance idea is founded on two theoretical premises, both of which are very controversial. Second, the lack of microcredit is not the cause of the Third World's deplorable poverty situation -- a fact that suggests that the supply of microcredit cannot alleviate poverty in these countries. Finally, the promotion of the microfinance ventures in the Third World has potentials to create private groups, which have vested interests in perpetuating their prevailing poverty situation. References. Adapted from the source document.

Paul Mosley and Lucy Steel.

Social Policy & Administration, Vol. 38, No. 7, Dec 2004, pp. 721-743.

Great hopes have been held out for microfinance and other community development finance institutions (CDFIs) in industrialized countries as an instrument of 'financially sustainable welfare provision', following on from their success in many developing countries. Using interview data drawn from an exploratory sample of 45 clients, this paper examines the social and economic impact of three microfinance institutions in Glasgow, Sheffield and Belfast. The tentative conclusion is that most loans we examined do hit the target of the 'financially excluded but bankable', and exert an impact on poverty and social exclusion through the labour market and through helping to build social networks which reduce interpersonal risk. Our initial estimate is that each loan studied here was responsible for about 0.67 exits from unemployment over the two years 2000-2. If this ratio holds good outside the sample (and we emphasize the limitations of small sample size), this could mean that in the absence of microfinance services, the national unemployment total would be higher by some 2.4 per cent (or 22,000 individuals). The loans we have examined also save about pound sterling 0.4 million on what would otherwise have been social security payments; grossed up again to all microfinance organizations, this implies an annual saving of about pound sterling 250 million (1.4 per cent) on the total social security budget. However, to achieve this optimal impact microfinance institutions need to diversify their product: for example by switching from business loans into consumption loans, micro-insurance, and equity, particularly in the rehabilitation of run-down council estates.

Muhammad Yunus.

: PublicAffairs, 2003, ix+273

Discusses the work of the Grameen Bank to provide micro-credit programs for the rural poor, established by the author in Bangladesh in 1983. Originally published in London, Arum Press, 1998.

Mark Schreiner.

Development Policy Review, 2003, 21, 3, May, Vol. 21, No. 3, 357-382

Reports of the success of the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh have led to rapid growth in funding for microfinance. But has the Grameen Bank been cost-effective? This article compares output with subsidy for the bank in a present-value framework. For the timeframe 1983-1997, subsidy per person-year of membership in Grameen was about $20.00, & subsidy per dollar-year borrowed was about $0.22. Although the article does not measure consumer surplus for Grameen users, the evidence in the literature suggests that surplus probably exceeds subsidy. The Grameen Bank - if not necessarily other microlenders - was probably a worthwhile social investment. 1 Appendix, 62 References. Adapted from the source document.

Mokbul Morshed Ahmad.

Geographical Journal, Vol. 169, No. 1, Mar 2003, pp. 65-74.

Recently, microcredit has become a fashionable cure-all for most non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Bangladesh. The provision of services to the poor is by definition always difficult, and even NGOs have problems. NGOs in Bangladesh define the poor in different ways when creating their target groups. The policies of nearly all NGOs in Bangladesh are formulated by their senior managers, and field workers are rarely consulted. This paper will explore the opinions on microcredit of selected field workers of four types of NGOs in Bangladesh - on how the problem of microcredit might be solved. Problems of microcredit programmes, they say, include non-accessibility to the poorest, low return, misuse and overemphasis on repayment. Field workers discuss what level of importance should be given to microcredit as against services like education, health or awareness creation. Most conclude that NGOs are overemphasizing microcredit, which leaves little time and few resources for other problems of the poor, so bringing the whole 'development' effort of the NGOs into question. Most field workers think that many microenterprises are not sustainable and that in many cases clients will remain dependent on the NGOs for credit.

Muhammad Yunus.

Round Table, July 2003, pp. 363-375.

The founder of Bangladesh's Grameen Bank, which enables poor people to borrow small amounts of money cheaply, argues that self-employment is the best way to create employment in Third World economies, and that economic success should be measured by social gains rather than financial returns.

Robin G. Isserles.

Women's Studies Quarterly, 2003, 31, 3-4, fall-winter, Vol. 31, No. 3-4, pp. 38-57.

Data culled from a review of the literature, fieldwork conducted at a 1998 summit in New York City, & interviews conducted 1998/99 with development workers are drawn on to critically evaluate some of the assumptions underlying microcredit & its use as an ostensible mechanism of empowerment for women in developing countries. Reasons for the enthusiastic adoption of microcredit as a way of lifting Third World women out of poverty by supporting them in the development of small business enterprises are examined & linked to two opposing interpretations of global political & economic change. The neoliberal ideology & populist rhetoric underlying the promotion of microcredit are discussed, & reasons why women are targeted by microcredit projects are identified. Elements of a more successful microcredit strategy/program/project are outlined, highlighting collective goals, savings, & empowerment; examples of several such program, generally smaller & run by local nongovernmental organizations, are offered. 23 References. K. Hyatt Stewart.

Kumar (ed ). Raj and United Nations. Econ. and Soc. Comm. for Asia and the Pacific. Development Research and Policy Analysis Div.

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 2002,

Assessment of global economic developments, and their impact within the ESCAP (Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific) region; topics include social security and welfare protection, good governance, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), microcredit programs empowering poor women, competition policies, regional cooperation, and export diversification. Also available in print (ISBN 92-1-120134-9) (Sales no. E/02.II.F.69) (ST/ESCAP/2219).

Heloise Weber.

Review of International Studies, Vol. 28, No. 3, July 2002, pp. 537-555.

Political and economic implications of poverty reduction and microcredit strategies, highlighting interlinkages between the World Trade Organization (WTO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, regional development banks, and bilateral and multilateral development agencies. Argues that this new strategy is incorporated into reconfiguration of global political economy as "crisis management", and continues to be the "Washington Consensus".

Donna Perry.

Human Organization, 2002, 61, 1, spring, Vol. 61, No. 1, pp. 30-40.

This paper analyzes the new role rural Senegalese women play as moneylenders in their agrarian communities. The shifting terrain of local credit institutions parallels contemporary trends in rural development: state-led agricultural cooperatives, which were introduced in 1960, formerly bolstered the position of elite farmers who lent out cash & grain to poor farmers during the dry-season months of scarcity. Agricultural cooperatives were abolished in the mid-1980s as a result of structural adjustment, & elite farmers have now shifted to market-based activities, no longer offering credit to neighbors & kin. During the same period, nongovernmental organizations, adopting a neoliberalist ideology, created a number of village banks that target women as the principal recipients of cash loans to be invested in income-generating activities. A significant number of these women choose not to invest this money in trade activities but to recycle the cash as high-interest loans to other farmers - emulating in new guise the earlier credit strategies of elite farmers. This paper examines the institutional changes unraveling in rural Senegal that contribute to the rise of a new class of female moneylenders during the contemporary epoch of neoliberal reform & offers ethnographic descriptions of women's money lending practices. 43 References. Adapted from the source document.

Farhad Hossain.

Foreign Policy, No. 132, 2002, pp. 79-82.

Analysis of a recent article by Ross Mallick in the journal Development in Practice, Vol. 12, No. 12, May 2002, is presented. Mallick argues that the Grameen Bank, a microcredit program in Bangladesh, does not succeed in empowering rural women. Rather, the program incites domestic abuse and creates conflict.

Gary M. (ed ). Woller and Warner (ed ). Woodworth.

Policy Studies Journal, Vol. 29, No. 2, 2002, pp. 263-333.

Macrodevelopment and microdevelopment, microcredit programs, capital markets, microfinance, and policy recommendations; developing countries; 6 articles.

Gender and development: Theoretical, empirical and practical approaches. Volume 2

Anne Marie Goetz and Rina Sen Gupta.

Elgar Reference Collection. International Library of Critical Writings in Economics, vol. 130. Cheltenham, U.K. and Northampton, Mass.: Elgar; distributed by American International Distribution Corporation, Williston, Vt., 94-112

2001 [1996]

Gambhir Bhatta.

The Policy Studies Journal, 2001, 29, 2, Vol. 29, No. 2, 283-295. 2001, pp. 283-295.

With the recent introduction of the Grameen Bank methodology in microcredit programs, it is hoped that rural development will finally impact poverty alleviation in Nepal. However, extreme poverty & hostile topography, & hence lack of markets, make it very difficult for any microcredit program to have much impact. It is argued here that the government should continue to place heavy emphasis on two key issues in any future program: expansion into the hills & mountain regions & specifically targeting poor women. Without these two elements, no microcredit program is going to have much impact on poverty reduction. 2 Tables, 1 Figure, 17 References. Adapted from the source document.

James Copestake, Sonia Bhalotra and Susan Johnson.

The Journal of Development Studies, 2001, Apr, Vol. 37, No. 4, 81-100 2001, pp. 81-100.

Expectations are high, but evidence of the impact of microcredit remains in short supply. This article estimates the impact of an urban credit program in Zambia on business performance & on a range of indicators of well-being. Borrowers who obtained a second loan experienced significantly higher average growth in business profits & household income. Inflexible group enforcement of loan obligations resulted in some borrowers, especially among those who had taken only one loan, being made worse off. Our methodological investigations suggest that the supply of rigorous impact studies can be increased by basing them on data collection that serves a wider range of purposes, including market research. 2 Tables, 34 References. Adapted from the source document.

Nitin Bhatt and Shui-Yan Tang.

The Policy Studies Journal, 2001, 29, 2, Vol. 29, No. 2, 319-333, pp. 319-333.

The article reviews three major controversies in the microfinance field: vehicles, technologies, & performance assessments for financial service delivery. It then proposes that these controversies be resolved by a perspective emphasizing institutional plurality & external & internal efficiencies for individual programs. Questions for further research are discussed in the conclusion. 49 References. Adapted from the source document.

Douglas R. Snow and Terry F. Buss.

The Policy Studies Journal, 2001, 29, 2, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 296-307.

Microcredit is a concept that has gained widespread acceptance by international development agencies & major donors. It is viewed as a way to correct both governmental & market failure in sub-Saharan Africa. Many view microcredit as a method for linking the formal & informal sectors of African economies to increase the reach of the formal sector. Extending the reach of the formal economy through microcredit is possible, & desirable, depending on macroeconomic reforms, respect for traditional financing relationships, & local control of institutions. However, very little has been done to determine the extent to which microcredit programs actually increase economic well-being. The model program, Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, has been studied & evaluated, but replications may not be inherently successful. The literature accepts that microcredit will increase economic well-being, if programs are correctly designed. Program design issues cannot be resolved, however, until economic well-being is measured & associated with specific designs. 2 Tables, 54 References. Adapted from the source document.

Napoleon Bamfo.

The Policy Studies Journal, 2001, 29, 2, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 308-318.

Since independence, governmental leaders in Africa have not pursued the policy option of making towns, represented as incorporated units, borrowers of commercial credit. To improve the quality of life among rural populations, governments in Africa should pursue the development strategy of making financial credit available to the towns located in those communities, because there is a high distribution of managerial expertise & material resources among the population. This article considers how African governments may adopt a development strategy that will encourage towns to borrow financial credit to engage in various economic & social activities, just like private companies. If these activities become viable, they may be a useful start in reversing the deterioration in economic & social well-being that several rural communities in Africa have suffered. 20 References. Adapted from the source document.

Gary M. Woller and Warner Woodworth.

The Policy Studies Journal, 2001, 29, 2, Vol. 29, No. 2, pp. 267-282.

The failure of top-down development policies in the Third World has given rise to a variety of grassroots, or bottom-up, development strategies to combat the severe poverty that continues to plague developing countries. Among these grassroots approaches, microcredit has grown rapidly in popularity, scope, & impact over the last two decades. Microcredit provides financial capital for poor entrepreneurs who toil in the informal, poverty sectors in developing country economies. In addition to the thousands of predominantly nongovernmental organizations that offer microcredit programs, many national governments in the Third World are now seeking to integrate microcredit strategies into their development policy & planning. Accordingly, this article examines the microcredit movement, including its rationale & underlying premises, its impact on the poor, & its role in development policy. 32 References. Adapted from the source document.

Maria Otero and Monica Brand.

Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Vol. 2, No. 2, Summer/Fall 2001, pp. 73-78.

Examines effectiveness of providing small loans at cost-of-lending interest rates to low-income and very poor self-employed people as a means of reducing poverty in developing countries.

B. Lynne Milgram.

Human Organization, 2001, 60, 3, fall, Vol. 60, No. 3, pp. 212-224.

In the 1990s, microfinance emerged as the leading development strategy adopted to alleviate poverty & empower the "poor," particularly women. Views differ, however, on the extent to which access to financial services can enhance participants' quality of life. This paper addresses this ongoing debate by analyzing a new (mid-1997) microfinance program in the northern Philippines established by the Central Cordillera Agricultural Programme (CECAP). Focusing on women's work in crafts, this paper argues that CECAP has initially focused on achieving financial self-sustainability within the short time frame allotted to the project, rather than emphasizing social change objectives. In so doing, primarily those women with already existing businesses or microentrepreneurs, not the "poor," are benefiting from the system; & many women are behind in their loan repayments. The fluctuating demand for crafts prevents entrepreneurs from passing on gains to small producers. By stressing timely loan repayments & not considering the broader socioeconomic & class infrastructure, CECAP's microfinance program has failed to build borrowers' collective agency & empowerment. This paper suggests that for microfinance to contribute to the needs of its members, programs must enfold social initiatives other than credit. 65 References. Adapted from the source document.

Adel Varghese.

American Anthropologist, Vol. 103, No. 1, 2001, pp. 258-258.

'Women and Microcredit in Rural Bangladesh: An Anthropological Study of Grameen Bank Lending' by Aminur Rahman is reviewed.

United Nations Children's Fund.

New York: United Nations Children's Fund, 1999,

Examines how small loans to poor people, when combined with basic social services and key social development messages, improve the well-being of borrowers' children, particularly girls; some focus on places where microcredit is working, and on experiences in Nepal, Vietnam, Egypt, India, and Kenya; 1980s-1990s. "Microcredit" is the extension of small loans to groups of poor people, especially women, for the purpose of investing in self-employment programs.

James Cerven and S. M. Ghazanfar.

Journal of Social, Political and Economic Studies, 1999, 24, 4, winter, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 445-462.

Investigates (1) how the growth of microfinance enterprises, beginning with Bangladesh's Grameen Bank, might jeopardize their effectiveness & (2) how different forms of organization & objectives of credit union programs can offer different institutional arrangements that may be useful in the framework of larger microlenders. A network of self-managed village banks known as cassies villageoisie in the Dogon region of Mali is examined as an illustration. 17 References. Adapted from the source document.

D. Stoesz and D. Saunders.

Social Service Review, Vol. 73, No. 3, Sep 1999, pp. 380-400.

In response to the conservative triumph in welfare reform in the USA, 'welfare capitalism' has been proposed as an agenda for alleviating poverty. Welfare capitalism is made up of 3 strategies: wage supplements, asset building through Individual Development Accounts and microcredit; and community capitalism. These strategies could be integrated through community financial services that would provide direct financial services to low-income families and aggregate capital in order to leverage community development projects. Examines whether welfare capitalism is a replacement for public welfare or merely a helpful sequel or addition to its programs. (Original abstract - amended)

Muhammad Yunus.

Journal of International Affairs, vol.52, No. 1, 1998, pp. 48-65.

Syed M. Hashemi, Sidney Ruth Schuler and Ann P. Riley.

World Development, 1996, 24, 4, Apr, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 635-653.

Presents findings from a 6-village ethnographic study of Grameen Bank & the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, two programs that provide credit to poor rural women in Bangladesh. The programs were found to have significant effects on 8 different dimensions of women's empowerment based on analysis of interview data (N = 120 households), sample survey data (N = 1,300 women), & case studies. It is argued that the success of Grameen Bank, in particular, in empowering women is due to its strong, central focus on credit & its skillful use of rules & rituals to make its loan program function. 5 Tables, 1 Figure, 36 References. Adapted from the source document.

Thomas Timberg.

Economic Development and Cultural Change, 1995, Apr, Vol. 43, No. 3, pp. 651-662.

A review essay on books by: Harry I. Greenfield, Invisible, Outlawed, and Untaxed: America's Underground Economy (Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 1993); & Harold Lubell, The Informal Sector in the 1980s and the 1990s (Paris: Development Centre of the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development, 1991 [see listings in IRPS No. 81]). Also reviewed is "Market Colors and the Soviet Economy," in Aaron Katsenelinboigen, Studies in Soviet Economic Planning (White Plains, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 1978). These books take a variety of approaches to examine the informal sector of various economies of the world. Such analyses are fraught with difficulty because the informal sector has been categorized & defined by numerous parameters ranging from rural-urban & growth-subsistence distinctions to size & parallel vs fragmented markets. The political integration of the informal sector has also been studied from a variety of angles, including demographics, revenue, social control, & social mobilization. The development & present status of a region's informal sector varies with historical & environmental factors, economic development, the dualism of a society's economy, & the effectiveness of a society's formal economy. These books attempt to integrate a seemingly overwhelming amount of data & information. Greenfield & Katsenelinboigen examine the political & legal aspects of the informal economy, the former focusing on the US & Western Europe & the latter on the former USSR. Lubell examines the economic & productive aspects of the informal economies of developing countries. D. Generoli.

Abu N. M. Wahid.

American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Vol. 53, No. 1, January 1994 1994, pp. 1-15.

The Grameen (grameen means rural) Bank of Bangladesh has innovated a mechanism under which credit can be provided to the poorest of the poor on a group liability basis instead of any collateral. Based on this principle, over the last decade, the bank has been successfully operating with an unprecedented loan recovery rate. Although from the point of view of profits, the Grameen Bank is not yet a viable institution, empirical evidence suggests that the bank's credit program has significantly improved the socioeconomic conditions of its borrowers. The Grameen Bank's success story in the alleviation of poverty in Bangladesh has resulted in widespread attempts of its replication in many other countries including the United States and Canada. The spread of the Grameen Bank idea around the world has drawn keen attention from researchers, policy makers and agencies interested in rural development.

Mohammad A. Auwal and Arvind Singhal.

Knowledge, Vol. 14, No. 1, September 1992, pp. 7-28.

Despite many decades of efforts to alleviate rural poverty, the number of rural poor in developing countries is steadily rising. Amid the general gloom and doom of failed poverty-focused programs, one bright spot is the experience of the Grameen (rural) Bank in Bangladesh. The Grameen Bank represents a radical institutional innovation because it provides collateral-free loans and various social services to poor Bangladeshis yet maintains a loan recovery rate of 98 percent. Founded as an action research project in 1976, the Grameen Bank has diffused to 50 of Bangladesh's 64 districts. The bank now has over one million members, 92 percent of whom are women. Over the past 16 years, the Grameen Bank has created a formidable knowledge base and expertise to combat rural poverty. The present article investigates the process through which this new knowledge base was created, and how it has diffused in Bangladesh to alleviate poverty.

Dale W. Adams and J. D. Von Pischke.

World Development, Vol. 20, October 1992, pp. 1463-1470.

View that credit programs do not alleviate poverty, nor enhance economic conditions of most poor people in low income countries.