1. The role of Microfinance in reducing exclusion, and
promoting women and girls’ economic rights and
empowerment – The Bangladesh ExperienceMousumi Saikia, Thursday 17
March 2016
2. 1. General Overview - Social Exclusion
2. Microfinance – role in promoting inclusion and empowerment
3. Theory of Change
4. Islamic Relief Worldwide’s Approach
5. Case Study
6. Evidence of Achievements
7. Islamic Relief’s Distinct Solution
Contents
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
3. General Overview - Social Exclusion
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
• Social exclusion - key determining factor of poverty and material
deprivation1
• Social exclusion is complex and multidimensional2
• Poor societies – economic exclusion is at the heart of the issue of
exclusion3
• Gender remains one of the most fundamental sources of inequality
and exclusion, spanning public and private spheres4 - higher barrier
for women to access finance
4. Microfinance – role in promoting inclusion and
empowerment
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
• Financial inclusion - critical to achieve inclusive growth and women’s
empowerment and sustainable economic growth and development.
• Empowerment - a multidimensional and interdependent process1.
• Meaningful empowerment and participation - require efforts to
balance power relations, both at the level of agency2 and structure3.
• Not enough to provide financial interventions to address only material
deprivation4
• Address wider issues which have a huge impact on the lives of poor
people5
5. Theory of Change
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
• Social empowerment model which integrates the micro
and macro level1 – Address empowerment more
holistically
• Bangladesh IMF ventures – integrating and harnessing
the synergies between I-MF, gender justice and child
protection2
6. Theory of Change
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
Addressing the underlying issues which exclude women and constrain
equitable opportunities and participation will:
• Increase women’s and girls’ agency and they will have genuine
access to and control over economic resources;
• Enable their participation in the family and community decision
making processes;
• Give them more power to balance their roles and mobilise against or
report violent incidents;
• This in turn will respond to their strategic gender needs and enhance
their ability to participate in, contribute to and benefit equitably from
development.
10. Changing the life of Motoara Begum
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
“I was very happy the day my
husband pulling our own van came
with the full income without rental
cost and gave the money to me”.
11. Evidence of Achievements
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
Project
Name
# Clients # SHG &
Cooperative
Impact on different spheres
Economic
Empowerment &
access to finance
Rights, Protection
and Justice
Access to Service Access to WASH
ICAP 5000 200 SHG and
1 Cooperative
5000 women and
girls are engaged in
IGAs like agricultural
production and
livestock rearing.
Protected 8 forced
marriage, 9 illegal
divorces, 29 domestic
violence and 5
polygamies.
Ensured social safety
net enrolment for 6 old
aged women and 4
widowed women.
85 sanitary latrine set
and 42 tube well were
claimed and constructed
from local govt. fund.
578 sanitary latrine and
265 tube well were
constructed through
cooperative initiative.
PROVED 1500 50 SHG and
1 Cooperative
All beneficiaries are
very actively
engaged in savings
mobilisation, group
and individual IGAs.
Diversified IGAs are
very common under
this cooperative.
Protected 4 child
marriage, 6 domestic
violence and 4 dowry
payment.
100% children’s
schooling of direct
beneficiary HHs is
ensured.
Access to local Govt.
office, Bank and
market places is
critically improved.
Women rights and
choices in decision and
protection against
domestic violence is
ensured under
collective action.
Sanitation and tube well
for all beneficiaries are
ensured by their regular
savings.
12. Islamic Relief’s Distinct Solution
CSW60, 14 - 24 March 2016, New York
• Microfinance services maintaining Islamic Shari'ah principles and
savings product to beneficiaries along with awareness programmes.
• Beneficiaries provided assets rather than cash loans.
• Training is an integral part of IMF programmes to develop the
beneficiaries in particular IGA so that beneficiaries can use optimum
opportunity of their skills.
• IMF programmes are not profit driven, but rather the focus is
beneficiaries’ progress towards poverty alleviation.
Notes:
Social exclusion contributes to the poor being ‘powerless’ and ‘voiceless’ and denies access to sources of livelihood.
It refers to individuals and societies and to disadvantages, alienation and lack of freedom.
Any claim in these societies to income has a greater relative weight than a claim to political and civil rights. In a properly functioning democratic system, citizens need to devote some time and energy to democratic practices. However, when a large part of the population is struggling for survival, the democratic system maybe more apparent than real, since it is likely to be controlled by groups with vested interests. When people are excluded from the main source of income, their first priority is survival and a basic livelihood. Economic empowerment model hinged on Islamic Microfinance.
It is manifested both formally, through laws and government institutions, and informally, through community and familial relations. Discriminatory social norms and unequal social and economic structures have led to women and girls being disproportionately represented among the world’s poor. It is estimated that women account for two thirds of the 1.4 billion people currently living in extreme poverty and make up 60% of the 572 million working poor in the world. Gender inequality also leads to women being more prone to the impacts of violence, conflict, humanitarian crisis and economic shocks, such as unemployment.
Notes:
Encompasses dimensions of social, economic and political empowerment.
Agency - an individual or group‘s ability to make purposeful choices
Structure – institutional, social, and political context of formal and informal rules and norms within which individuals and groups pursue their interests
Number of successful beneficiaries, not create real and sustainable impact for the entire community.
They may be the original reasons why people fall into poverty and deprivation in the first place; They throw people deeper into extreme conditions of poverty and suffering; They make it harder for people to escape conditions of poverty and suffering
Notes:
Process of developing a sense of autonomy and self-confidence, and acting individually and collectively to change social relationships and the institutions and discourses that exclude poor people and keep them in poverty.
Create an enabling environment for female entrepreneurship with equal opportunities by tackling the underlying causes of their economic and social exclusion, as well as address child welfare concerns which often affect women’s ability to join livelihood enterprises and increases their vulnerability.
Notes:
Process of developing a sense of autonomy and self-confidence, and acting individually and collectively to change social relationships and the institutions and discourses that exclude poor people and keep them in poverty.
Create an enabling environment for female entrepreneurship with equal opportunities by tackling the underlying causes of their economic and social exclusion, as well as address child welfare concerns which often affect women’s ability to join livelihood enterprises and increases their vulnerability.
