The district level microfinance awareness meet organised a few days back  by NABARD at  Roing has once more brought to  fore a tool which has been in application  over two decades and a half in tackling a pivotal concern of the nation i.e rural poverty.  
This is microfinance and along with it, over these years the term Self Help Group (SHG) has become synonymous with financial and social empowerment of the rural population, particularly women. And by their sheer effectiveness, they have now embedded into the collective consciousness of the country as talismans for unlocking the potential of the poor, struggling to emerge from  the bottom of socio-economic pyramid.
With almost 17 percent of world population, meaning one in every 6 people on planet living in India  and  myriad as well as unique problems, promoting rural prosperity had been a challenge with a constant hunt for  unique solutions and pathways. In terms of efficacy, microfinance and SHG have gained remarkable acceptance and NABARD, as an apex developmental financial institution has been a major promoter of these tools.
Microfinance,which  is generally defined as financial services for poor and low-income clients  has  emerged as a powerful instrument for poverty alleviation primarily due lack of penetration of formal  banking  in rural areas. Interestingly, the Self Help Groups -Bank Linkage Programme (SHG-BLP),the main microfinance strategy in India which started simply as a bank outreach effort, has  fast metamorphosed into a holistic programme for financial, economic, social and of late, technological capital building in rural areas,making it  the largest microfinance programme in world. The scripters of this success story have been  hundreds of channel partners, NGOs, governments both central and state, and above all millions of SHG women who bestowed their trust in this initiative. As on 31st March 2018, there are 8.7 million SHGs with over 23 lakh SHGs credit-linked during 2017-18 financial year alone.
Simultaneously, India’s gender gap in access to financial service has also come down to 6 per cent, thanks to  microfinance initiatives that  have a major role in bringing  unbanked women to  mainstream via the domain of SHG-BLP. Though not much discussed, this is a no less a socio-economic revolution.
But for Northeast and particularly Arunachal Pradesh, there are causes of concern. If easy access to credit is a benchmark for success of any microfinance policy, Northeast’s SHGs are lagging way behind compared to the southern region and even eastern region.
Honesty and ability to work hard are the accepted parameters for success of any SHG and Arunachalee women, without any doubt have them in plenty.A little extra  initiative to reach out to  them should be viewed as an investment, with  little or no chances of defaults.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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