Understanding social performance : a ‘practice drift’ at the frontline of Microfinance Institutions in Bangladesh

This article examines the role of microfinance staff and procedures in enabling microfinance's social mission. It does so primarily through studying institutional ruling relations and practices in rural Bangladesh. Attempting to move away from the linear and deterministic approaches of impact studies, it ethnographically scrutinizes the everyday practices of implementers. Findings point to the emergence of systemic practices that jeopardize microfinance institutions' potential to perform their social mission. These include low client-selection standards, hard selling of loans and forceful loan renewal, little follow-up on loan use, and abusive and violent client-retention and repayment-collection strategies. This is conceptualized as a 'practice drift' as distinct from the commonly reported 'mission drift'. Rather than stemming from planned, top-down changes in institutional mission and strategy, practice drift emerges from a displacement of decision-making processes to the branches. The article argues that observed changes in microfinance practice are enabled by decentralized structures and management systems that leave the choice of tactics used to achieve targets to the discretion of field staff

Allies among enemies: political authority and party (dis)loyalty in Bangladesh

The authority of political leaders in Bangladesh rests on diverse qualities, not least of which are the muscle and finance they can mobilize, and the relationships they can craft with senior party members. These are utilized to confront rivals both within and outside one’s own party, competition which can be just as fiercely fought. In some instances, the intensity of intra-party competition can be so severe, that a further quality emerges: the capacity to find allies among enemies. Building local inter-party alliances can bolster the authority of politicians, yet severely detriment party coherence. This argument is developed through an analysis of mayoral and parliamentary elections over the past decade in a small Bangladeshi city, where a ruling party MP and opposition Mayor appear to have developed such a relationship. This has thwarted the electoral ambitions of their fellow party members, posing a serious challenge to party discipline. While political competition is often seen as being inter or intra party, here it is around inter-party alliances. This portrayal suggests we need to give greater emphasis to the decentralized and local character that political authority can take in Bangladesh

Resilience among the Extreme Poor in Bangladesh

This report focuses on the dynamics of resilience amongst the extreme poor in Bangladesh. It argues that resilience is a more appropriate focus of analysis than graduation in trying to understand extreme poor people's attempts to improve their livelihoods and wellbeing. It offers a conceptual framework to understand resilience and then draws on primary empirical data to test the framework. The report also offers a set of reflections on the usefulness for policy of the concept of resilience and also attempts to identify potential indicators

Qualitative exploration of sociocultural determinants of health inequities of Dalit population in Dhaka City, Bangladesh

Objectives In recent years, Bangladesh has made remarkable advances in health outcomes; however, the benefits of these gains are unequally shared among citizens and population groups. Dalits (jaat sweepers), a marginalised traditional working community, have relatively poor access to healthcare services. This study sought to explore the sociopolitical and cultural factors associated with health inequalities among Dalits in an urban setting. Design An exploratory qualitative study design was adopted. Fourteen in-depth interviews, five focus group discussions and seven key informant interviews were conducted. The acquired data were analysed using an iterative approach which incorporated deductive and inductive methods in identifying codes and themes

Factors influencing feeding practices of extreme poor infants and young children in families of working mothers in Dhaka slums: A qualitative study

BackgroundNutritional status differs between infants and young children living in slum and non-slum conditions—infants and young children living in City Corporation slums are likely to have worse nutritional status compared to those from non-slums. Furthermore, families in slums tend to engage female labor in cash-earning activities as a survival strategy; hence, a higher percentage of mothers stay at work. However, little is known about feeding practices for infants and young children in families with working mothers in slums. This study aims to understand the factors that determine feeding practices for infants and young children living in families with working mothers in Dhaka slums.MethodsThis study adopted a qualitative approach. Sixteen In-depth Interviews, five Key Informant Interviews, and Focused Group Discussions were conducted with family members, community leaders, and program staff. Method triangulation and thematic analyses were conducted.ResultsFeeding practices for infants and young children in families with working mothers are broadly determined by mothers’ occupation, basis civic facilities, and limited family buying capacity. Although mothers have good nutritional knowledge, they negotiate between work and feeding their infants and young children. Household composition, access to cooking facilities, and poverty level were also found to be significant determining factors.ConclusionThe results suggest a trade-off between mothers’ work and childcare. The absence of alternative care support in homes and/or work places along with societal factors outweighs full benefits of project interventions. Improving alternative childcare support could reduce the burden of feeding practice experienced by working mothers and may improve nutritional outcomes

Methodology and Participants.

<p>Methodology and Participants.</p

Socio-demographic characteristics of the participant (IDI: n = 16).

<p>Socio-demographic characteristics of the participant (IDI: n = 16).</p