In a country where 50 million households live in poverty and have limited access to financial services, self help groups (SHGs) are servicing more than 33 million members and have become the dominant model of microfinance.
CGAP's new two-part study examines the financial viability of SHGs in India and proposes a methodology for designing SHG programs to ensure their sustainability. Nine strong SHG programs demonstrate the potential of the model when it is well executed.