Abstract:
The Ghanaian economy, like most developing economies, has about 52 percent
of its population being women and mostly found in the rural areas (Asiama and
Osei, 2007). Increasing women’s financial inclusion is significant as women
disproportionately experience poverty, stemming from unequal division of
labour and a lack of control over economic resources. The objective of this
research was to assess the impact of Village Savings and Loans Associations
(VSLA) on the livelihood of women in rural communities within Asikuma
Odoben Brakwa District. The study obtained information from ninety-seven
(97) respondents mainly through questionnaires. The impact of VSL groups on
rural women livelihoods outcomes was analyzed by the use of a regression
model. The results showed that VSL groups in the Asikuma Odoben Brakwa
District depend on strategies such as training of members, low tolerance of
arrears, savings mobilization and high level of transparency which help in
building trust among members. Evidence showed that access to savings and
loans in the VSLAs has a positive and significant impact on the livelihood of
rural women. It was realized that the scheme is faced with some challenges which
include lack of enough money to save, late repayment of loans and members
accessing small loans. Despite these challenges, it was realized that to ensure
the survival of VSLA in the Asikuma Odoben Brakwa District, there is the need
to maintain the low interest of VSLA as it will attract and help maintain existing
members, strengthening rules and regulations, there must be regular training and
financial advice and the leaders must be strict and firm to ensure the
sustainability of the groups.
