At SAGE PWG Foundation, we are passionate about substantial impact and meaningful change to all the organizations and recipients of our funding. For that to occur we believe that the empowerment for women needs to occur on a multitude of levels as seventy percent of impoverished people in the world are women (UN, 2006). Therefore, one of the goals of empowerment is enabling more women to actively participate in economic decisions, improving their living standards.
Studies have shown that empowerment of individuals includes the process of enabling them to make strategic life choices and moving towards their goals in life. Allowing women to take part in economic activities and decisions so that they become sustainable economically by giving them financial resources achieves this outcome. The world cannot thrive without specifically supporting these women and improving their living conditions which in turn improves the lives of children.
An essential tool, as a crucial step in facilitating empowerment for women in general and fighting poverty, is microfinancing interventions. Microfinancing allows individuals to increase their economic activities by providing access to commercial banks, lending below market rates. By microfinancing women who have low or no income, one is providing resources for women who usually cannot reach the formal banking system due to high interest rates or complicated process. The aim of microfinancing is creating an opportunity to be more active in economic decisions and to reap the benefits of added income, work, food and social security.
We are excited to find organizations to partner with that have a proven record of successful utilizing microfinancing in the US.
Kabeer, Naila. (2001), Reflections on the Measurement of Women’s Empowerment: In Discussing Women’s
Empowerment-Theory and Practice, Sida Studies No. 3. Novum Grafiska AB: Stockholm.
Krishna G. Karmakar. (2014): Revamping Micro-Finance , LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing United Nations. (2006), Building Inclusive Financial Sector for Development. New York: United Nations.
