When the patriarchy ‘fights back’! Assessing the role of credit microfinance in the empowerment of women in Malawi

Dados Bibliográficos

ID22229563
AutoresTughaniwe Silavwe (University of Malawi), Pearson Nkhoma (0000-0002-0822-424X, Goldsmiths University of London, autor correspondente)
Ano2025
Volume5
Fascículo10
Data de publicação2025-09-22
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoSN Social Sciences (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 2662-9283 • E-ISSN: 2662-9283
EditoraSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s43545-025-01185-8
OpenAlexW4414410811
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas1
Referências citadas36

This paper examines the impact of credit access on women’s empowerment, focusing on microfinance as a tool for gender and economic empowerment in rural development. It draws on the lived experiences of 20 women in rural Malawi, exploring how credit access influences their status and roles in household and community decision-making. In a predominantly patriarchal society, where men are widely regarded as heads of households and primary decision-makers, this qualitative study investigates how women conceptualise their own empowerment and navigate these power dynamics through credit access. Grounded in the capability and intersectionality lenses, it highlights the challenges faced by rural women, marginalised due to their gender, social inequality and rurality, within patriarchal systems. The study examines whether microfinance genuinely leads to women’s empowerment or instead simply facilitates a negotiation of status and power in a context where the patriarchy ‘fights back’ empowerment interventions

Empowerment · Intersectionality · Microfinance · Patriarchy · Qualitative research · Women's empowerment · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Microfinance and Financial Inclusion · Urban and Rural Development Challenges