Volume: 3 Issue 3 [March 2020]

Article:Role Of Microfinance Institutions In Poverty Reduction Employment Creation And Income Generating Activities In Ghana

Author: Ramatu Ussif, Murat Ertugrul

Volume: 3, Issue 3, March-2020

DOI: Nor. Am. Aca. Res. 2020 : 3(3) 1-30; : https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3694393

Abstract: The poor been provided with financial services like credit, insurance, savings, and investment as employment creation and poverty reduction technique has earned much importance in the country for the past decade. This article examines microfinance institutions' role in poverty reduction, employment creation, and income-generating activities in Ghana. Again, it determines whether the institution has helped in the reduction of poverty, improving the standard and condition of living of its clients/customers. Primary and secondary data were used. A total of 90 respondents were interviewed made up of customers with questionnaires and was analyzed using SPSS. From the investigation, the article found out that microfinance institutions have highly impacted positively and significantly on customers in the form of income generation, employment creation, reducing poverty, increasing the standard of living and household's well-being of the customers. Also, the emanated results from the questionnaires administered reveal a favorable relationship between microfinance, poverty reduction and employment creation since most of the beneficiaries attested to a level of improvement in their businesses through the loans they receive and also improvement in their living standards and conditions since they became part of the microfinance program. Aside from the positive impacts, the institution is not without problems/issues affecting its operations and growth. These problems/issues include Risk problem, regulatory issues, capacity building problem, and problems of information gathering and dissemination which if stakeholders address properly, the microfinance institution will continue to contribute meaningfully towards employment creation, reducing poverty and increasing incomes across the world not only in Ghana.

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