Template-Type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Azhar  Khan
Author-Name-First: Azhar 
Author-Name-Last: Khan
Author-Email: m.azhar.khan@icloud.com
Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde
Author-Name: Twyeafur Rahman
Author-Name-First: Twyeafur
Author-Name-Last: Rahman
Author-Email: m.t.rahman@strath.ac.uk
Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde
Author-Name: Robert E Wright
Author-Name-First: Robert E
Author-Name-Last: Wright
Author-Email: r.e.wright@strath.ac.uk
Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde
Title: The impact of micro-credit on employment:  evidence from Bangladesh and Pakistan
Abstract: This paper examines the impact of micro-credit on employment. Household-level data was collected, following a quasi-experimental design, in Bangladesh and Pakistan. Three borrower groups are compared: Current borrowers; Pipeline borrowers and Non-borrowers. Pipeline borrowers are included to control for self-selection effects. It is argued that microcredit causes a substitution of employment away from employment-for-pay to self-employment.

Therefore, the effect on total employment is ambiguous. OLS and fixed effects regression are used to examine separately self-employment and employment-for-pay between three groups of borrowers. For Pakistan, there is no evidence that micro-credit effects employment. However, for Bangladesh, there is robust evidence consistent with this hypothesis.

Length: 26 pages
Creation-Date: 2016-07
Revision-Date: 
Publication-Status: Published
File-URL: http://www.strath.ac.uk/media/1newwebsite/departmentsubject/economics/research/researchdiscussionpapers/16-10_combined.pdf
File-Format: Application/pdf
Number: 1610
Classification-JEL: G21, J22, 139
Keywords: Micro-credit, self-employment
Handle: RePEc:str:wpaper:1610