Improving Women's Access to Credit

Improving Women's Access to Credit
in Community Development Programmes

"Women have plans for themselves, for their children, about their home, the meals. They have a Vision. A man wants to enjoy himself."
- Grameen Bank's Md. Yunus to a US Congressional Forum on why 94% of his loans go to women.

Documents	Organizing Women in the Informal Sector - The SEWU Experience Supporting Tanzania's Business Women Development-Japan: Women's Bank Shuns Old Banking Culture The Magic Ingredient? Microfinance & Women's Empowerment - Linda Mayoux Low-income Women's Bank in Benin: Social and Economic Empowerment - Mauricette Mongbo "Support to Women's Productive and Income-Generating Activities" - Alana Albee, UNICEF Beneath the Surface: Microcredit and Women's Empowerment - Abdul Bayes Integrating a Gender Perspective in Microfinance in ACP Countries - Helen M Binns Gender and Microfinance: guidelines for best practice - Susan Johnson From Access to Empowerment: Gender Issues in Micro-Finance - Linda Mayoux From the Margin to the Mainstream: Micro-Finance Programmes and Women's Empowerment - The Bangladesh Experience - Gita Sabharwal Gender myths: "Micro-Credit no Panacea for Poor Women" - Nan Dawkins Scully The Vicious Circle of Poverty - A Gender-Aware Approach Micro Credit and Women's Empowerment - Sheela Purohit Women in the informal sector and their access to microfinance - ILO Case Study of the Centre for Rural Education and Development (CRED) - Valentina Dall'Olio Percentage of Women Being Reached by the 34 Largest Programs Reporting Poorest Clients Beijing Declaration 1995: [Strategic objective A.3][Strategic objective F.1] Bibliography: Women and Credit
Strategies and Tools	Characteristics of financial services that meet women's needs Features of Credit Programmes that Enhance Women's Participation Targeting poor women as the best way to reach poor children. Gender issues in microfinance
Organizations	Women's World Banking Women Mutual Groups in Sri Lanka The Indian experience of organizing women's savings and credit groups: Three examples The Mahila Milan Credit Scheme in India Bikash - A Women' s Project in Bangladesh India: SEWA Bank Sri Lanka: Women's Bank SolidAfrica - a small-business development program. Women Vision International Women Advancing Microfinance International
International Networks and Programmes	Sustainable Micro-finance for Women's Empowerment CIPE: Strengthening Women's Business Organizations Global Fund for Women ICRW: International Center for Research on Women - PROWID Grants Program ILO: Gender and Access to Financial Services Pakistan: Women in Credit Information and Resource Centre Women's Opportunity Fund UNIFEM: United Nations Development Fund for Women WRED: Women and Rural Economic Development The Field of Dreams and The BusinessWoman's Internet Directory - comprehensive online resources on a variety of business-related information. GENFINANCE: A network to discuss gender dimensions of microfinance.
Gender and Development Resources	GERNA: Gender and Environment Research Network in Asia SAWNET: South Asian Women's Network The SEEDS Booklet Series - Population Council Web-sters' Net-Work Women's Studies Resources Yahoo: Women's Studies

Besides the articles/write-ups listed above, have a look elsewhere in the Virtual Library on Microcredit at the SEWA, Streedhan and Working Women's Forum case studies from India; and "Short Takes" - features of credit programmes adopted by women's groups in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Case study write-ups for this page are particularly welcome!

A selection of the Scout Report