Record Details

Determinants of microfinance outreach in Sub-Saharan Africa: A panel approach

Acta Commercii

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Determinants of microfinance outreach in Sub-Saharan Africa: A panel approach
 
Creator Adams, Abdulai Tewarib, Devi D.
 
Subject Economics Breadth; Depth, Determinants; Microfinance Institutions; Outreach; Sub-Saharan Africa
Description Orientation: The study focused on analysing the outreach performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in providing critical services for the poor using innovative lending techniques within constrained environments. Research purpose: The study examined the trade-off relations between the depth and the breadth of outreach and identified institutional level factors that influence MFIs outreach in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Motivation for the study: MFIs continue to play critical roles in extending financial services to the poor and yet previous studies have not analysed comprehensively the dimensions of outreach necessary for financial inclusion. Research design, approach and methods: The study employed correlation analysis and random effects methodology to panel data regression analysis (619 observations, 71 MFIs across 10 countries) to establish the trade-off relations and the determinants of outreach in SSA. Main findings: It was established that a trade-off exists between the depth of outreach (access to credit disbursement by poor clients) and breadth of outreach (number of clients served). The results further revealed that gross loan portfolio, portfolio at risk, borrower per staff member, interest rate, and operating expenses to assets ratio are the main institutional determinants of MFIs outreach in SSA. Practical/managerial implications: The policy implication is that MFIs that concentrate efforts in reaching the relatively poor do so at the expense of reaching a large number of poor clients. We suggest that effective monitoring of depth and breadth and the adoption and implementation of cost-saving outreach technologies by MFIs could enable them to operate sustainably and efficiently. Contribution/value added: A major contribution of the study is the trade-off relations revealed between the depth of outreach and the breadth of outreach of MFIs which advances the outreach literature.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor
Date 2017-01-31
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Quasi-Experimental
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/ac.v17i1.414
 
Source Acta Commercii; Vol 17, No 1 (2017); 10 pages 1684-1999 2413-1903
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/414/623 https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/414/622 https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/414/624 https://actacommercii.co.za/index.php/acta/article/view/414/617
 
Coverage Sub-Saharan Africa — 71 Microfinance institutions over a 10 year period
Rights Copyright (c) 2017 Abdulai Adams, Devi D. Tewarib https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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