Credit for What?: Informal Credit as a Coping Strategy of Market Women in Northern Ghana

Kati Schindler
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Kati Kraehnert

No 715, Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin from DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research

Abstract: This paper explores the use of informal credit as a strategy for managing risks by market women in northern Ghana. A broad concept of the costs of risk management strategies is introduced and encompasses both a time and monetary dimension. Based on qualitative data, the analysis reveals that market women invest a considerable amount of time in maintaining complex networks of informal credit providers to insure their access to credit once a shock occurs. Informal credit involves high transaction costs and prevents market women from growing out of poverty in the long term.

Keywords: Africa; Ghana; informal credit; risk management; women (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D13 O12 O17 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 p.
Date: 2007
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-dev and nep-mfd
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Credit for What? Informal Credit as a Coping Strategy of Market Women in Northern Ghana (2010)
Working Paper: Credit for what? Informal credit as a coping strategy of market women in northern Ghana (2006)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:diw:diwwpp:dp715

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