A Study on Empowerment of Rural Women Through Microcredit Facilities in Sri Lanka

This study seeks to examine the impact of micro credit facilities on women empowerment in the context of the great importance being given to the entrepreneurs. Access to credit can help women by enabling them to start and expand small businesses, often accompanied by market access. This study has the research problem--whether the micro credit facilitates in empowering women entrepreneurs in the rural areas of Sri Lanka. Therefore, the study has the primary objective to identify the impact of micro credit on empowerment and the sub to assess the relationship among them. The study adopts a causal survey research design through which 337 members of microfinance institutions （MFIs） in the study area of Northern Province in Sri Lanka were selected using stratified random sampling and data collected from them by using a structured questionnaire. Correlation and regression analysis has been used to find out the impact of micro credit facilities on empowerment of women entrepreneurs in the rural areas of Sri Lanka. Linear multiple regression analysis was used to determine the micro credit facilities that affect women empowerment by using SPSS. The model summary indicates that 10.9% of the variation in the women empowerment can be explained for the micro credit facilities and remaining 89.1% influencing by other factors, such as education, experience, income, etc. The study concluded that micro credit facilities alone do not support the entrepreneurs to enhance them and it makes the policy recommendations to guide development of micro credit facilities that are beneficial to the clients and other stakeholders of the MFI institutions.

Micro Credit is a Tool for Women Entrepreneurship Development

As a result of 30 years of an internal armed conflict, women and children not only lost male relatives in struggle, but comprised of the displaced. Most of the households in Sri Lanka are now headed exclusively by women. The micro finance institutions help the poor people in effective ways in order to generate income to enhance their standard of living in the rural areas. This study focuses on women entrepreneurship development through micro credit programme under post war development in Jaffna District selecting four rural areas which are Kopay, Chavakachcheri, Varani and Kodikamam. The main objective of this study is to identify the linkage with micro credit programmes and entrepreneurship development. Further it has an objective to identify the impact of micro credit on entrepreneurship development. The information has been gathered by primary data which has been distributed through the close ended questionnaire to the rural women in the above selected areas and seventy seven （77） responded out of 100. The relation between the micro credit programmes and women entrepreneurship development is examined using Statistical Package for Social Sciences （SPSS）. It is concluded that the Entrepreneurship development has a significant relationship （p〈0.05） with the microcredit programme and its impact on entrepreneurship development is crucial. It is suggested that the microcredit facilities are essential in women entrepreneurship development under post war development.