A new study by QUT researchers found that financial credit alone cannot break the cycle of poverty for women in Bangladesh.
More than money, extra support builds confidence and competitiveness
Customised services assist women to have greater say in decisions
Program reduced emotional abuse and threats of violence from spouse
Instead, a "credit-plus" approach combining loans with tailored support delivered transformative empowerment outcomes.
Professor Dipa Sarkar (pictured above) and then-PhD candidate Jinnat Ara, from QUT's School of Finance and Economics, evaluated the Targeting the Ultra Poor (TUP) program implemented by BRAC - the largest Global South-led development organisation, which focuses on women from deemed "vulnerable but not bottom poor" households who were often excluded from both safety nets and traditional microfinance programs.
"Unlike conventional microfinance, the TUP program offers extra assistance to women in moderate poverty but still struggling below the poverty line," Professor Sarkar said.
"It combines soft loans with enterprise training, healthcare services, legal and social counseling, and structured savings options over a two-year program that is focused on overcoming gendered barriers to empowerment.
"The women receive training on income-generating activities including livestock rearing, vegetable gardening, nursery maintenance, followed by the loan transfer to be used specifically for a chosen activity.
"Women in the program also received hands-on livelihood training, mentoring, and community integration support, to assist them to save and invest productively and overcome structural barriers to empowerment."
Professor Sarkar said the study identified two vital dimensions for transformative women's empowerment.
"We evaluated the findings from 5,925 rural households throughout the country, from the perspective of external empowerment as the 'power to' and internal empowerment or 'power from within'," she said.
"We found women who had received both credit and extra services had gained influence over household decisions such as savings, land transactions, and asset purchases.
"The program had significantly increased both sole and joint decision-making, fostering inclusive financial planning and greater voice in children's marriage arrangements and essential household expenditures.
"Beyond visible decision-making, women experienced growth in social capital, legal awareness, and confidence to participate in community forums.
"The program reduced emotional abuse and threats of violence from intimate partners and encouraged women to embrace competitive environments-key indicators of rising agency."
Professor Sarkar said these findings could inform the work of organisations involved in raising the status and agency of women in developing countries.
"Empowerment is not just about access to money - it is about building confidence, knowledge, and social support.
"Our findings show that when women receive holistic assistance, they gain the power to make decisions and the confidence to shape their futures, and potentially generations to come."
The study, Beyond Loans: Empowering Women Through Tailored Support, was published in The Journal of Development Studies.
