Performance and Sustainability of Self-Help Groups in India: A Gender Perspective

Abstract

The existing literature on self-help group (SHG) bank linkage programs portrays them as an effective tool being used in various countries to approach a range of socioeconomic issues. This paper explores the performance and sustainability of this type of program in India at the group level. Because income-generating activities and other characteristics vary with the gender composition of self-help groups, their performance and sustainability vary. The analysis in this study is based on data from a survey carried out in six states in India. Overall, the performance analysis reveals that all-female SHGs perform best. The female SHGs are doing particularly well in terms of recovery of loans and per capita saving. The econometrics results indicate that only all-female SHGs are sustainable. The factors that determine the sustainability include recovery of loans, per capita savings, and linkage with an SHG federation.