Impact of Women Borrowers Culture on the Financial Efficiency of Microfinance Institutions in ASEAN-4 Countries

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of women borrowers' culture on the financial efficiency of microfinance institutions (MFIs) between the years 2011 to 2019. The sample data consisted of 90 MFIs from ASEAN-4 countries. As the first stage analysis, data envelopment analysis (DEA) was employed to determine the score of financial efficiency for the MFIs. In the second stage, Multivariate Panel Regression Analysis were used to examine the impact of women borrower on the level of financial efficiency of the MFIs. The findings reveal that Cambodia has the highest financial efficiency score in ASEAN 4. This indicates that the MFIs in Cambodia are sustainable in providing financial services to the poor in the long run. Moreover, the findings also found a positive relationship between women borrowers culture and the efficiency of the MFIs, which implies that women borrowers reduce the risk of default, thus confirming that women have better loan repayment rates than male borrowers. The outputs from this study provide new insights for the stakeholder of the MFIs as well as policymakers to develop a strategy in order to promote the continuous development of the MFIs.