Can village savings and loans association (VSLA) approach achieve/promote rural sustainable development in the Egyptian community?
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JCEFTS-08-2021-0047 |
| Published date | 14 June 2022 |
| Date | 14 June 2022 |
| Pages | 332-349 |
| Subject Matter | Economics,International economics |
| Author | Safaa Shaaban |
Can village savings and loans
association (VSLA) approach
achieve/promote rural
sustainable development in the
Egyptian community?
Safaa Shaaban
Business Department, BAEPS, The British University in Egypt (BUE), Cairo,Egypt
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to examine the impactof the Village Saving and Loans Association
(VSLA) on sustainabledevelopment (SD) and to explore VSLA as an approachthat leads to women’sfinancial
empowermentand its impact on SD in Egypt.
Design/methodology/approach –A mixed method was applied for this study, including qualitative
and quantitative methods. Qualitative method includes 50 individual interviews with women in the upper
Egypt communities that applied the VSLA approach,the quantitative method, on the other hand, relied on
secondarydata, such as the outcomes of (knowledge, attitude,and practices [KAP]). The VSLA was appliedin
the EgyptianCommunity in 2015–2019, according to KAP study reportspresented by international funders.
Findings –This study concludes that this VSLA approach helped many women and familiesto improve
their economic situation and overcome financial hardship, which reflected on rural SD. Furthermore, the
concept equipped and empowered women with a needed financial hardship that allowed them to improve
their family situationand to participate in the process of developing their communities in a sustainableway.
Also, womenparticipated in VSLA leading initiativesand took an active role in rural SD in their community.
Research limitations/implications –The findings only apply to the sample thathas participated in
the VSLA project implementedby an international donor. A longitudinal quantitativeevaluation of the VSLA
approach and its impact on SD strategyof Egypt would be recommended in terms of further research study,
highlightingthe role of VSLA’s impact on achieving the Egyptian sustainablestrategy 2030.
Originality/value –This paper is unique in presenting the concept of the VSLA as an intervention and
approach forrural SD in the rural community by empowering marginalized womenfinancially. Although this
approach has been used by internationaldonors as part of large programs implemented in Egypt and other
countriessince 1979 aimed at SD in rural areas, there is scarcity in the literature related to this approach.
Keywords Sustainable development, VSLA, Economic empowerment, Egyptian community,
Gender equality
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Rural women are one of the most crucial agents to promote social changes required to
achieve sustainable development (SD) in rural areas. However, rural women face a lack of
social status, financial stability, credit, health care and education, which are main the
The author would like to express appreciation to the CARE international in Egypt for their hard
work in supporting the VSLA model in their work in upper Egypt. Also immensely grateful to
support during the research in their target communities in upper Egypt.
JCEFTS
15,3
332
Journalof Chinese Economic and
ForeignTrade Studies
Vol.15 No. 3, 2022
pp. 332-349
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1754-4408
DOI 10.1108/JCEFTS-08-2021-0047
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/1754-4408.htm
challenges women facein Egypt’s rural community, which is exacerbated by the globalfood
and economic crisis, climate change and environmental degradation. Empowering rural
women is key not only to the well-being and environmental quality of individuals, families
and rural communities,but also to overall SD in the Egyptian community.
As mentioned by Al-Ayouty and Hassaballa, SD has emerged as one of the most
pressing issues in many developing countries and is included in Egypt’s 2030 vision
(Al-Ayouty and Hassaballa in 2020). The vision envisions a new Egypt with a competitive,
balanced and diversified economy, based on innovation and knowledge, by a balanced and
diversified ecological collaboration system, investing in place and human ingenuity to
achieve SD and prevent impoverishment (Sustainable Development Strategy: Egypt Vision
2030) (Al-Ayouty and Hassaballa,2020).
Women empowermentis defined as a:
Multi-dimensional social process that helps people gain control over their own lives. It is a process that
fosters power that is, the capacity to implement in people, for use in their own lives, their communities,
and in their society, by acting on issues that they define as important”(Page and Czuba, 1999).
Empowering mean that what is expected of a man or a woman, a girl or a boy, differs
depending on the Egyptian socio-culturalcontext in which they live in Egypt. Gender roles
is an interaction processbetween families, peers and community, whathe or she learns from
others. it is an important factor in reaching gender equality in rural Egyptian society.
Understanding gender equality means that the “rights,responsibilities and opportunities of
individuals will not depend on whether they are born male or female”(Warth and
Koparanova, 2012, p. 6). Women economic/financial impact is considered the fundamental
aspect in empoweringwomen in rural Egypt.
There are many impacts of women’sfinancial empowerment: The first impact is
environmental qualityconcepts such as livability, living quality, livingenvironment, quality
of place, residential perception and satisfaction in living in the community. Women’s
economic/financial impact is considered the fundamental aspect in empowering women
which will result in sustainable rural communities and thereby fostering economic growth
in all Egypt. However, the literature misses that the social status in the community is
considered as environmental equality, so if the women themselves do not feel the financial
stability and good social status in the Egyptian society, this will definitely affect SDGs’
achievement and suitability.
Second, the impact of women’sfinancial empowerment on economic growth, social
progress and environmental sustainability are all factors that should be considered. Such a
sustainable route of development can be achieved by offering equal opportunities to men
and women, for example, includingin decision-making in all types of activities, to guarantee
that women’s and men’s interestsare both taken into account in resource allocation.
The global economy is so multifaceted that it will be difficult to measure the impact of
numerous individual factors on it. Several researchers have sifted through this complex
global economy (Boretor, 2009); (Nguyen and Le, 2019) but there is a lack of a holistic
approach to measuring all of its dimensions. So, there is a need to measure the world
economy from different angles to attain synergy. One aspect that contributes to the global
economy is entrepreneurship.Entrepreneurship role is to enhance the productivity,capacity
and size of the economy with the help of creativity and competitiveness (Acs et al.,2008);
(Zanjirchi et al., 2019). The concept of entrepreneurship is not new in economic history.
Many writers have shown the strong relationship between entrepreneurship and the
empowerment of local communities.Particularly in this era, economic literaturepays special
attention to the capacity of entrepreneurship to promote social well-being and development
Village
savings and
loans
association
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