Examining microcredit self-help groups through the lens of feminist dignity

ABSTRACT Despite decades of controversy, microcredit initiatives continue to be championed by government aid agencies as a ‘win-win’ for both international development and women’s empowerment, bolstered by ideas of ‘smart economics.’ Most scholarship critiques these programs from a Marxist or poststructuralist perspective. This article instead investigates microcredit programming through the lens of feminist dignity and demonstrates the use of a framework founded on this idea. By using this framework to interrogate evidence from in-depth qualitative field research in West Bengal, India, this article argues that a focus on feminist dignity can improve women’s agency and wellbeing.