Events

From remote rural areas to urban slums, saving groups (SGs) provide cash-scarce households with a secure place to save and the opportunity to borrow small amounts on flexible terms, while earning a return on their deposits. Many studies have shown that low income households rely on SGs to accumulate usefully large lump sums of money. For the more than 7 million people in 300,000 SGs across the world, SGs have become an important vehicle not only to gain access to fi nancial services but also to learn and apply concepts of financial literacy. In addition, SG members report that their groups have increased social capital, improved gender relations, and promoted women’s leadership. Learn more about SGs in this topical overview brief from LIFT II.