Sustainable Livelihood and Socio-economic Status: A Study on the Role of Microfinance in Sonitpur District of Assam

Abstract

In todays world, it is imperative to earn a sustainable livelihood which can cope-up with unforeseen shock or disaster and can recover from the same to live a life in a better way. In this study, focus has been given on the role played by micro finance in supporting the livelihood generating activities by helping in acquiring the livelihood assets. Further, the changes in the socio economic status of the beneficiaries of micro finance have also been studied. This study has been conducted in two randomly selected development blocks of Sonitpur district in Assam viz. Balipara development block and Rangapara development block. A sampling size of 400units has been taken up for collecting the primary data required for the study, consisting of the members of theSelf-Help Groups (SHGs) as the sampling unit. The collected primary data have been analyzed with the help of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS)software, have shown positive results regarding acquiring the livelihood assets by the rural folk with the help of micro finance. Moreover, Social Status Index and Economic Status Index has also been computed to study the socio-economic changes among the beneficiaries of micro finance.