Assessing the Resilience of Women SHGs in India: Pre- and Post-Pandemic Comparative Study of Bank Linkage Program

Exclusive Women Self-Help Group-Bank Linkage Program (SHG-BLP) underscored their critical role in promoting women’s economic empowerment and enhancing financial inclusion across India recently. It is a community-based organization specifically designed for women to empower them economically. Exclusive women SHG-BLP in India serve two primary functions: accumulation of savings and the disbursement of formal credit. The accumulation of savings is crucial as it encourages women to cultivate a habit of saving, enhancing their financial stability and fostering a sense of economic independence. This process not only empowers individual women but also strengthens community resilience, as pooled savings can be utilized for various productive needs. In parallel, the disbursement of formal credit plays a pivotal role in enabling women to access financial resources that would otherwise be unavailable to them. By providing loans for entrepreneurial ventures or household expenses, these SHGs facilitate women's participation in the economy, allowing them to generate income and contribute to their families' financial well-being. Our present research emphasizes the importance of formal finances in enhancing women’s economic resilience. This study examines the region-wise comparative performance of exclusive women SHG-BLP in 2022-23 compared to 2018-19 based on the Status of Microfinance in India Report, NABARD. We find women-centric SHG growth in India after the Covid-19 scenario.