"The most important thing is that we developed friendships." reciprocity, care, and social support through a microfinance intervention : a case study from Uganda

Abstract

A qualitative study was conducted from September 2019 to December 2019 to understand how an agricultural microfinance intervention targeting women in southwest Uganda impacted social support networks. We interviewed 30 women after their participation in an intervention that supplied them with materials to begin a poultry business with no interest loans. Specifically, this study sought to describe how relationships between project implementers and participants in the intervention developed into both formal and informal networks of social support. Social support emerged in the form of friendship, counseling, access to markets, financial support and through relationships based in trust. These findings help describe the care work that is produced outside of international development projects that may have implications for scale up.