ABSTRACT
The main objective of this chapter is to assess the impact of credit access on married women’s economic empowerment. A two-stage random sampling technique was applied to select married women who are clients and non-clients of a saving and credit association. Propensity score matching and a logit model were employed to evaluate the impact of Amhara credit and saving institution credit access on married women’s economic empowerment. The outcome variables included married women’s savings, income, and decision-making power. Covariates used to match clients and non-clients and to examine the determinants of married women’s decision-making power included age, dependency ratio, family size, married woman’s level of education, land size, husband’s education level, distance to urban center, animal fattening and rearing activities, and infrastructure facility. Propensity score matching results show that the saving and income differences between clients and non-clients are significant. The mean total annual saving difference between clients and non-clients was 1587.3 birr, but the mean annual voluntary saving difference was 560.71 birr. The mean annual income difference between clients and non-clients was 1659.8 birr. Access to credit significantly increased the decision-making power of married women as measured by participation in business activities, freedom of movement, use of family planning services, visiting and support of relatives, type of crops to be planted, and buying quality seed and fertilizer.
