Blog FeedMicrofinance and Health Protection
My colleagues and I often say or write that “microfinance alone is not enough.” Others counter that microfinance, by helping the poor do microbusiness to get more income and assets, must surely be a wonderful way to give a boost up a rung or two of the ladder out of poverty. Yes, it is a wonderful boost, but consider how easy it is slip and fall off the ladder back into the depths of poverty. Take just one problem other than lack of money which is faced by the poor (by all of us, in fact) - ill health. It is a major cause as well as effect of poverty. In the 2002 World Bank study, Dying for Change, illness was the most commonly cited reason for “a downward slide into poverty… ahead of losing a job, which took second place. The poor are more likely to be exposed to health risks because their work is physically demanding and often dangerous. But they are least likely to be able to afford health care when they are injured or fall ill.” Read more …
