Combating poverty among women through poverty alleviation fund in the Savelegu-Nanton district in the Northern region of Ghana

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to assess the extent to which the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF) was helping to reduce poverty among women in the Savelugu-Nanton District. The quota, purposive, snowball and simple random sampling techniques were used to obtain a total of 172 respondents for the study. Two sets of interview schedules were used for the two groups, a questionnaire for the PAF loan staff and focus group discussion guide for the beneficiaries. The data analysis was done with the Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) Version 16 software. Findings from the study indicated that loans were generally perceived by the PAF women beneficiaries to be helpful to them in sustaining and expanding their income-generating activities, supplementing household incomes and acquiring some basic assets. The conclusion reached was that loans can be beneficial to women only if a genuine effort is made by District Assemblies (DAs) to remove barriers that militate against the empowerment of women in rural communities in Ghana. On the basis of the findings, it was recommended that, in order to reap the full benefits of loans, District Assemblies should supply other inputs, in addition to cash, to groups that apply for loans. Also, while encouraging performing groups, non-performing ones should critically be examined and supported. Further, attempts should be made to encourage loan defaulters to pay up their loans so as to make the scheme sustainable.