Contribution of women groups in economic empowerment – A tool for poverty reduction

Abstract

Women are seen as exceptionally instrumental in the process of change in rural areas. Their engagement in self-help groups grants them the chance of getting involved in the decision-making process. Empowering of women groups economically is very vital not only for the reduction of the unequal levels of poverty among women but also acts as a significant step to raising household income and enhancing economic development in countries as a whole. The mixed method approach of research was employed for the study. A total of 60 respondents were sampled from the various women’s groups using the simple random sampling method. Questionnaires were used to collect data and interviews were also conducted for the leaders of the women’s groups. The data was entered and analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. The processed data was retrieved and presented in the form of tables and charts. Women empowerment has helped them in the establishment of new business as a result of entrepreneurship training received. Also, the village savings and loan scheme through women empowerment has helped in the sustainable income generation activities as stated by majority of the respondents. Challenges affecting the effectiveness were difficulty in accessing loans due to the high demand for collateral, the high-interest rate on loans and access to and control over land due to traditional/cultural factors. The District Assembly should endeavour to provide more loan facilities for these women to help them engage in the trade which sometimes serves as the only source of income to support the household. Also, the leaders of the groups can liaise more with NGOs who will provide the group members with more business knowledge through skill and training workshops and seminars which is relevant to their cause of trade. Again, loans from the District Assemblies and the banks should be made accessible to these women by reduction of the interest rate on loans that had to be paid.