EFFECTS OF MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS ON SUSTAINABILITY OF WOMEN-OWNED PROJECTS IN KENYA (Research Proposal Sample)

EFFECTS OF MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS ON SUSTAINABILITY OF WOMEN-OWNED PROJECTS IN KENYA: A CASE STUDY OF UPENDO WOMEN GROUP ITEN TOWN
Jackson Omondi
PPM /17/15
RESEARCH PROJECT PROPOSAL SUBMITTED TO MOI UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF DEGREE IN BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN PROJECT PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT
AUGUST, 2019
DECLARATION
This research is my original work and has not been presented by anyone else for examination in any other university.
JOHN BOSCO AMAYO Sign……………………… Date………………………..
PPM/17/15
Declaration by the Supervisor
This research has been submitted with my approval as Moi University supervisor.
MISS SITUMA
Sign…………………………… Date………………………….
Lecturer
DEDICATION
I dedicate this research project to my parents for the financial support and information towards the attainment of the final research analysis, my friends, brothers, and sisters for their moral support.
Acknowledgment
I wish to acknowledge and appreciate the efforts of my supervisor Miss Situma, for the guidance and close supervision on the process of the research project. Gratitude goes to my colleague Mike who assisted on the idea to come up with this project. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the entire classmates who cooperated with me during my camp life.
ABSTRACT
The main purpose of this study is to determine the effects of micro-finance institutions on the sustainability of women owned-projects in Kenya: the case of Upendo women group Iten town. Specific objectives of the study include establishing strategies used by micro-finance institutions to finance Upendo Women Group, to determine the effects of microfinance institutions on Upendo Women Group projects and to find out challenges faced by Upendo Women Group in obtaining or accessing services offered by Micro-Finance institutions.
A case study research design will be used to conduct this research. The population consists of 150 women who include 20 officials and 130 members from Upendo Women Group. Primary data will be collected using structured questionnaires. Data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and presented in frequency tables and percentages.
The major micro-finance institutions in Iten include Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT), K-Rep, and Faulu Kenya. The legal environment is generally hostile to Women Group. The major effects of microfinance loans on Upendo Women Group include business expansion through funding by micro-finance enterprises, increase in household income as a result of having taken microfinance loans, increased farming activities like cattle rearing and improved social status of the women entrepreneurs. The likely challenges facing Upendo Women Group in obtaining or accessing services offered by Micro-Finance institutions are high-interest rates charged by the microfinance institutions, short grace period and loan repayment period and tedious legal process
The researcher recommends that the loan repayment period should be made flexible and perhaps paid over a period ranging between one to two years to ease the pressure of quick repayment that might hinder achievement of immediate impact. The researcher suggests that further research should be carried out to find out the role of women groups in economic growth.
LIST OF FIGURES
TOC \o "3-3" \f \u Figure 1.1 Conceptual Framework
LIST ABBREVIATIONS
ADAPAgricultural Development Assistance Fund
AFCAgricultural Finance Corporation
FSAsFinancial Service Associations
GOKGovernment of Kenya
K-REPKenya Rural Enterprise Program
MFIsMicro Finance institutions
NGONon-Governmental Organization
ROSCAsRotating Savings and Credit Associations
SMESmall and Medium Enterprises
UNDPUnited Nations Development Program
OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
Micro Finance The organizations and institutions that avail credit facilities and loaning programs
Women-Owned ProjectsProjects managed and operated by women
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
This chapter forms the basis of this study. It constitutes of the background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study research questions, the significance of the study, assumptions of the study, scope of the study and the conceptual framework.
1.1 Background of the Study
The beginning of formal microfinance programs can be traced back to the 1950s after World War II. They proliferated in the 1950s and 1970s and in the process, lending methodologies suitable for low-income clients in both rural and urban areas redeveloped. By the 1970s some commercial banks, particularly in some parts of Asia, had gained decades of experience in mobilizing large amounts of saving from rural people. According to the World Bank, Africa as a continent had been left behind in the development of microfinance programs. This is based on the fact that Africa’s microfinance institutions tend to be smaller and less advanced as compared to those in Asia and Latin America.  However, there is a common factor in the objective of microfinance programs globally. The microfinance programs are often designed for the poor of whom women are the majority.
Women have increasingly become the key target group for microfinance programs. Consequently, providing access to microfinance facilities is not only considered a pre-condition for poverty alleviation but also considered as a strategy for empowering women.
Opportunity International has stated that 14.2 million of the world’s poorest women now have access to financial services through specialized microfinance institutions such as MFIs, banks, NGOs, and other non-bank financial institutions. This is about seventy-four percent (74%) of the nineteen million (19 million) of the poorest people in the world who are now being served by microfinance institutions. access to credit strengthens women’s bargaining positions and financial stat within the household and thereby makes it possible for them to influence a greater number of strategic decisions. The study was set to establish the effects of micro-finance institutions on the sustainability of women-owned projects in Kenya, the case of Upendo Women Group Iten town.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The contribution of women projects to economic development has not been adequately highlighted. Though women are often regarded as the ideal clients for the microfinance institutions, the actual impact of microfinance loans to women projects has been based on assumptions. Inadequate systematic studies have been carried out on microcredit loans directed to women projects in Kenya, particularly the K-REP program. Apparently, only one report sponsored by K-REP has indirectly touched on this topic in terms of microfinance credit, employment, income, and output.
1.3 Objective of the Study
The main objective of the research is to determine the effects of micro-finance institutions on the sustainability of women-owned projects in Kenya, the case of Upendo Women Group Iten town. Specific objectives of the study re:
* To find out microfinance institutions found in Iten town.