Publication
Abstract
Microfinance emerged in 1970s as non-standard provision of microcredits to low-income people. Despite global recognition, there are only a few reliable papers that measure true impact of microfinance.
The first major obstacle is lack of reliable data.The second is derived from flaws in robust methodology. The paper has two contributions.
First, we develop novel approach to microfinance impact assessment based on retrospective data collection for robust measures of impact. Second, we quantify the impact of microfinance on business and welfare improvement in case of Uzbekistan.