Analysis of Poverty Reducing Effects of Microfinance from a Macro Perspective: Evidence from Cross-Country Data

Katsushi Imai, Raghav Gaiha, Ganesh Thapa and Samuel Annim
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Raghav Gaiha: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA) and Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi (India)
Ganesh Thapa: International Fund for Agricultural Development, Italy

No DP2010-25, Discussion Paper Series from Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration, Kobe University

Abstract: This paper tests the hypothesis that microfinance reduces poverty at macro level using the cross-country data in 2007. The results of econometric estimation for poverty head count ratio show, taking account of the endogeneity associated with loans from microfinance institutions (MFIs), that microfinance loans significantly reduce poverty. Thus, a country with higher MFI's gross loan portfolio tends to have lower poverty incidence after controlling the other factors influencing poverty. We also found that poverty reducing effect tends to be larger in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) as suggested by the negative and significant coefficient estimate of the SSA dummy and gross loan portfolio. From a policy perspective, our results would justify increase in investment from development finance institutions and governments of developing countries into microfinance loans as a means of poverty reduction.

Pages: 22 pages
Date: 2010-09
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dev and nep-mfd
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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