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Inclusive microfinance : reaching disabled people through partnership development

LEYMAT, Anne
March 2012

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"This study examines projects that support access to financial services for disabled people, highlighting good practices that guarantee efficiency and sustainability of initiatives with a particular focus on the use of microcredit. The study is based on the findings of: a global survey and interviews with disabled people's organizations and microfinance providers; a literature review; field studies in seven countries; and the outcome of two regional workshops (in Kenya and Bangladesh) and a practitioner workshop in Geneva. It is estimated that 10 to 12 per cent of the world's population has some kind of impairment and of those around 82 per cent live below the poverty line. Most people with impairments who work are self-employed. However, access to financial services for disabled people remains sporadic. The central part of the study explores the potential for successful, responsible, and complementary partnership development between microfinance actors and disabled people's organizations. Our findings demonstrate that if disabled people are given the opportunity to access financial services, many are capable of successfully managing loans and businesses - thereby becoming agents of their own development"
Enterprise Development and Microfinance Vol. 23 No. 1

Strengthening the knowledge and information systems of the urban poor : policy paper

SCHILDERMAN, Theo
April 2002

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This brief policy paper summarises the findings of a research project that focused on the information needs of the urban poor, and the information sources they access. The study found that the main sources of information were social networks, key informants, and infomediaries. It ends with six suggestions for development agencies seeking to share their knowledge and information with the urban poor

Strengthening the knowledge and information systems of the urban poor

SCHILDERMAN, Theo
March 2002

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Presents the findings of a research project that focused on the information needs of the urban poor, and the information sources they access. The study found that the main sources of information were social networks, key informants, and infomediaries. It considers the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs), and impact assessment methods. It ends with suggestions for development agencies seeking to share their knowledge and information with the urban poor

Technology justice : a call to action

MEIKLE, Amber

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This publication presents the concept of Technology Justice and the case for radical and urgent action to achieve it. It provides an insight into three key global technology injustices, using example cases from different countries and sectors to explore various drivers of this injustice. These Include: why the poor cannot access or use the essential technologies that others take for granted; how misuse and overuse of technologies is damaging the environment we live in now, and stacking up problems for future generations; how technological innovation often contributes to these injustices, and fails to focus on solving the most pressing social and environmental challenges we face. The report ends with a call to action, outlining the need for change

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