A Comprehensive Review of Literature on the Impact of Microcrediton Women Economic Empowerment – An Indian Context

Abstract

India is a developing and emerging economy that has experienced rapid growth since the 1990s. However, for decades, poverty has been one of the nation’s greatest challenge. Despite continued attempts by the government to bring millions of people out of poverty, the country still has six percent of its total population living in extreme poverty. Unexpected implications of the Covid-19 pandemic undoubtedly exacerbated the present poverty rate as well. According to the first National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) published by the NITI aayog, a quarter of India’s population remains underprivileged. Around 53 million of India’s poorest people are female, according to Statista Research. In order to combat the poverty and raise the standard of living of the poor, the Government of India has implemented a variety of programmes since 1950s aiming at empowering women as they are a crucial tool in the fight against poverty. Empowering women is not only good for the women concerned but there are other evolving factors associated with it. For instance, empowered women are more likely to bargain for better health and educational outcomes for their children (Garikipati, 2008). Women’s economic empowerment is vital not only for individual, family, and social well-being, but also for economic efficiency as a whole.