V2I10P30

The Impact of Microfinance on the Livelihood of Women in Ghana

Forgive Kwadamah^1*, Francis Pol C. Lim^2,3

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of microfinance services on the livelihoods of women in La-Nkwantanang-Madina Municipality in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. The research objectives included investigating the factors that influence women’s access to microfinance service, examining the role of microfinance services in improving women’s income and assessing the role of microfinance services in developing women’s savings habit. Literature was reviewed in consistence with these objectives. A descriptive approach was used for this investigation and purposive and convenience sampling techniques used to select a sample size of 100 women who subscribed to microfinance services for the study. Primary data were collected through the use of structured questionnaires. SPSS was used to analyze the data. Findings from the study indicated that interest rate on microloans received, time lags between loan application and disbursement, loan diversion, total application loss and loan size and adequacy were some of the factors that influenced the delivery of microfinance services. The results showed that the interest rates on funds received from microfinance institutions were reasonable; hence borrowers did not struggle to repay their loans. The study recommended that microfinance institutions must lift the cap on their loans so that their clients could access larger sums of money for the operation of their household enterprises. Apart from that, continuous training and capacity building on financial literacy, business skills and management and entrepreneurial skills must be conducted to help in the improvement of clients’ knowledge on the efficient utilization of loans in order to avoid default in loan repayment.

Keywords:

Household, investment, livelihood, microfinance, micro-insurance, microloan savings and service