PROSPECTS AND CHALLENGES OF DEVELOPING WOMEN ENTERPRISES THROUGH MICRO-FINANCE: THE CASE OF THE NANUMBA NORTH AND SOUTH DISTRICTS OF THE NORTHERN REGION OF GHANA

Abstract

Women own a substantial percentage of small scale enterprises worldwide and play critical roles in rural development. They, however, remain disadvantaged in terms of access to financial support for starting and expanding their businesses. This paper examined the prospects and challenges of developing women-owned businesses through micro-finance as a strategy for poverty alleviation in the Nanumba North and South Districts of the Northern Region of Ghana. Applying the mixed research methodological research strategy to explore the subject, the paper suggests that women micro-enterprise development through micro-finance positively impacted on the lives of rural women entrepreneurs and their households regarding self-employment, better incomes, household food security, enrolment and retention of children in school, greater access to health care and access to information on reproductive health issues. In this regard, the paper argues that strategies that aim at boosting rural women’s productive capacity and enhancing their direct access to financial services ought to be encouraged as this lead to higher investment in human capital and greater impact on children’s health, nutrition and education, with tremendous long term positive implications for families and societal progress.