Grameen Microcredit as an archetype of Islamic and ethical micro financing experiences: Respondents’ perceptions on its viability in Nigeria

Abstract

Making microcredit facilities accessible to the poorest members of society have attracted well support from neoliberals partly due to its prominence on individual responsibility and those on the left of the political spectrum to a certain extent for the reason of its potential to empower women. Following this premise, the paper focused on justification of ethical micro financing in Nigeria with consideration of experiences around the globe that Islamic micro financing is one of the fastest growing segment in both the domestic and international financial system. This study also intends to inspire the espousal of alternative ethical finance to tie together its benefits in Nigeria. A structured questionnaire was distributed to the respondents in Bauchi metropolis; thereby convenience sampling technique was used. The data collected were analyzed using frequency tables, percentages and simple tabulation. This study believed that poverty is not created by poor people. It is created by the institutions and policies which surround them. Loans offer people the chance to take initiatives in business and agriculture to make earnings that enable them to pay off debt. This paper largely recommended that the acceptance of Islamic and ethical micro financing experiences are foremost component of the strategies of the struggle against poverty and can be used to ease the discouraging impact of the high unemployment rate among the youth in Nigeria and other Muslim countries.