CUREJ - College Undergraduate Research Electronic Journal
Debt and Development: Exploring the microfinance debate in Senegal
Division: Social Sciences
Dept/Program: Urban Studies
Document Type: Undergraduate Student Research
Mentor(s): Elaine Simon
Date of this Version: 01 December 2006
This document has been peer reviewed.
Abstract
Founded on the assumption that poor people are “natural entrepreneurs” (Bornstein 2005), microfinance has signaled a paradigm shift in development ideology. Using my experiences with microfinance in a fishing village in Senegal, this study will address the claims driving the microfinance movement, debate its pros and cons and pose further questions about its validity and widespread implementation. Instead of lifting people out of poverty and empowering women, microfinance may have regressive long-term potential for borrowers. How loans get used is a central theme of this essay. How microfinance and the notion of the “entrepreneur” fits into the rural, Senegalese cultural context is also addressed. Microfinance programs should be implemented with complementary measures that challenge the systematic causes of inequality examined in this article.
Suggested Citation
Owen, Mallory A., "Debt and Development: Exploring the microfinance debate in Senegal" 01 December 2006. CUREJ: College Undergraduate Research Electronic Journal, University of Pennsylvania, https://repository.upenn.edu/curej/111.
Date Posted: 06 January 2010
This document has been peer reviewed.
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