Participatory Learning for Women's Empowerment in Micro?Finance Programmes: Negotiating Complexity, Conflict and Change

summary Micro?finance programmes for women are currently promoted not only as a strategy for poverty alleviation but also for women's empowerment. However, the complexity of empowerment itself and interlinkages with policy make conventional research methodologies extremely lengthy and costly. This article proposes frameworks and participatory methodologies for integrating empowerment concerns into ongoing programme learning. These would themselves be a contribution to empowerment. First, programme staff would be given a more representative and reliable exposure to the priorities and problems of programme participants. Second, it would develop networks and a forum for discussion between women themselves on issues relevant to their interests and integrated into programme decision?making. The quantitative and qualitative information obtained by programmes and clients on an ongoing basis would be directly and immediately available to inform policy decisions and enable independent outsider research to be cost?effectively targeted to issues where it is really needed for policy development

Vers un nouveau paradigme dans les programmes de micro-crédit

Le financement des programmes de micro-crédit au bénéfice d’un grande nombre de femmes va augmenter dans les années 1990, sous l’impulsion du CGAP. La littérature préparée à l’occasion du sommet pour le micro-crédit, à Washington en février 1997, ainsi que de nombreuses propositions de crédits émanant des donateurs et des ONG présentent de façon très positive des programmes de micro-crédit. Ces programmes sont de plus en plus nombreux, touchent une population de plus en plus large, et sont so..

Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre

Référence : Mayoux, Linda. “Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre : “L’Empowerment” des femmes contre la viabilité ? (deuxième partie)”, in Jeanne Bisilliat et Christine Verschuur. Genre et économie : un premier éclairage. Genève : Graduate Institute Publications, 2001, pp. 401-415, DOI : 10.4000/books.iheid.5493. Acheter le .pdf chapitre éditeur. […] Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre Institutionnalisation de lignes directrices tenant compte des questions de genre d..

Taking Gender Seriously: Towards a Gender Justice Protocol for Financial Services

Gender equality of opportunity and women's empowerment are now widely recognised as integral and inseparable parts of any sustainable strategy for economic growth and pro-poor development: • Women are statistically the global majority. As the global majority, women cannot be treated as ‘a special case ’ but their needs and interests must be as integral a part of any development policy as those of men. • Gender equality of opportunity and women's empowerment are essential for economic growth. Studies by World bank and others have shown that countries that have taken positive steps to promote gender equality have substantially higher levels of growth2. • Gender equality and women's empowerment are essential components of poverty reduction strategies. Gender inequality and women's disempowerment are key factors in creating poverty3. Gender inequality means women have higher representation amongst the poor and therefore women's needs are the majority norm rather than minority interest in poverty reduction strategies. Women also have prime responsibility for children and family wellbeing which makes them key actors in poverty reduction

Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre

Référence : Mayoux, Linda. “Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre : “L’Empowerment” des femmes contre la viabilité ? (deuxième partie)”, in Jeanne Bisilliat et Christine Verschuur. Genre et économie : un premier éclairage. Genève : Graduate Institute Publications, 2001, pp. 401-415, DOI : 10.4000/books.iheid.5493. Acheter le .pdf chapitre éditeur. […] Des éléments essentiels d’une politique de genre Institutionnalisation de lignes directrices tenant compte des questions de genre d..

Women's empowerment or feminisation of debt? Towards a new agenda in African microfinance

Report based on a One World Action conference, London, March 2002. Includes bibliographical referencesAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:m03/27188 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreSIGLEGBUnited Kingdo