Impact of Village Savings and Loans Associations
Written by: Christopher Ksoll, Helene Bie Lilleør, Jonas Helth Lønborg and Ole Dahl Rasmussen
Seventy percent of the world’s poorest people live in rural areas in developing countries with poor access to finance. Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) have become an increasingly widespread intervention aimed at improving local financial intermediation. Using a cluster randomized trial, we investigate the impact of VSLAs in forty-six villages in Malawi. We find positive and significant intent-to-treat effects on the number of meals consumed per day, total household consumption, and number of rooms in the dwelling over a two-year period. This effect is linked to an increase in savings and credit obtained through the VSLAs, which has increased agricultural investments.
In 2016 the article was accepted for publication in the international journal Development Economics Vol. 120
Related publications

Scientific journal
Impact of Village Savings and Loan Associations: Evidence from a cluster randomized trial
Go to Journal of Development EconomicsMore about the initiative

Initiative
Microfinans in Malawi
Go to initiativeLatest releases on the same welfare topic

Research
Tools and graphics
Global Migration Information Hub
November 2023

Research
Comment
A big step for the EU – a smaller setback for asylum policies?
November 2023

Research
Podcast
The significance of the labor market reforms of the 1990s
November 2023

Research
Comment
Will AI be the return of the skilled workforce?
November 2023