Women's economic empowerment through microfinance in Cambodia

Abstract

The use of microfinance to enhance income generation and job opportunities among the poor is a popular tool for governments and non-governmental organisations involved in raising standards of living in developing countries. Providing very poor families with small loans to invest in their micro enterprises, Village Bank empowers them to create their own jobs, increase their incomes, and increase their families' well-being. As women are more likely to spend the majority of their personal incomes on improving the family situation, this economic empowerment greatly benefits their children, who are generally more likely to attend school and have better nutrition.

Autonomisation économique des femmes à travers le microfinancement au Cambodge

L'utilisation du microfinancement pour améliorer la génération de revenus et les possibilités de travailler parmi les pauvres est un outil puissant pour les gouvernements et les organisations non gouvernementales qui tentent d'améliorer le niveau de vie dans les pays en développement. Les Banques villageoises, en fournissant aux familles pauvres des prêts destinés à être investis dans des microentreprises, confèrent à ces familles les moyens de créer leurs propres emplois, d'accroître leurs revenus et d'améliorer leur bien-être. Comme les femmes sont plus susceptibles de consacrer la majeure partie de leurs revenus personnels à améliorer la situation de la famille, cette autonomisation économique profite considérablement à leurs enfants, lesquels ont ainsi généralement plus de chances d'être scolarisés et mieux nourris.

Empoderamento econômico das mulheres através de microfinanças no Camboja

O uso de microfinanças para aumentar a geração de renda e oportunidades de trabalho entre os pobres é uma ferramenta popular para governos e organizações não-governamentais envolvidos em elevar os padrões de vida nos países em desenvolvimento. Oferecendo a famílias muito pobres pequenos empréstimos para que invistam em suas microempresas, o Village Bank as empodera para criar seus próprios empregos, aumentar suas rendas e intensificar o bem-estar de suas famílias. Como é mais provável que as mulheres gastem a maioria de suas rendas pessoais para melhorar a situação da família, este empoderamento econômico beneficia imensamente seus filhos pois, em geral, é mais provável que eles frequentem a escola e tenham uma melhor nutrição.

El empoderamiento económico de la mujer mediante microfinanzas en Camboya

Las microfinanzas son un mecanismo muy utilizado por los gobiernos y las organizaciones no gubernamentales para elevar los niveles de vida en los países en desarrollo dado que estimulan la generación de ingresos y crean más oportunidades de empleo entre los pobres. A través de pequeños préstamos para la inversión en microempresas, el Banco Village ofrece la posibilidad de que las familias más pobres generen sus propios empleos, aumenten sus ingresos y eleven su nivel de bienestar. Dado que son las mujeres las que invierten la mayor parte de sus ingresos personales en mejorar la situación de sus familias, su empoderamiento económico aporta grandes beneficios para los hijos, quienes en general tienen niveles más elevados de asistencia escolar y de nutrición.

Keywords:

• Labour and livelihoods – microfinance
• South Asia; East Asia

Acknowledgments

I am grateful to Professor Carole Faucher of the University of Tsukuba for her insightful comments and intellectual guidance in the earlier version of this paper. I want further to thank Professor Habibul H. Khondker of Zayed University for his advice and invaluable comments. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 8th ASEAN Inter-University Conference on Social Development (Manila, the Philippines) in May 2008.

Notes

Mohammed Yunus won the Nobel Peace prize in 2006 for his efforts in combating poverty and providing resources to the poor via the Grameen Bank and the microfinance model. In the past 30 years Grameen has grown to over 3.7 million borrowers worldwide with a 98 per cent repayment rate, higher than any commercial bank.

Mayoux's virtuous spirals diagram illustrates that (1) Savings and credit provision is assumed to contribute to a process of individual economic empowerment, (2) Women's economic empowerment is then assumed to lead to increased wellbeing for themselves and their families and (3) This economic empowerment is further seen as enabling women to renegotiate changes in gender relations leading to social and political empowerment.

Chbap srey or didactic code, written by Krom Gnoy, who has been nominated as a scholar in Khmer literature, provides specific advice for daily living to women. This ideal is about proper behaviour of women, including proper comportment and correct actions.

For details about education in Cambodia, visit: www.scribd.com/doc/2192903/Education-in-cambodia

Report of Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports on the Assessment of the Functional Literacy Levels of the Adult Population of Cambodia (Whitaker et al. 2005).

For the historical background of the microfinance programme in Cambodia, prepared by the Asia Resource Center for Microfinance, visit: www.bwtp.org/arcm/cambodia/I_Country_Profile/Country%20Profile_Cambodia.pdf

This data was provided by Mr. Seng Sintha, IRDEP – Aoral project manager during the time I conducted my fieldwork.

Local moneylender refers to a person who is better off in a village.

LWF is carrying out six Integrated Rural Development projects through Empowerment Projects in three different provinces – Kampong Speu, Kampong Chnang, and Battambang.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Daraka Chhay

Daraka Chhay received her PhD in International Political Economy in July 2010 from Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Japan. Her research interests are in women's issues, rural development and political Buddhism in Southeast Asia, particularly Cambodia.