SHG Approach

Self Help Groups, What are They?

The SHG approach recognizes that poor women have the potential needed for self-development. It also asserts that if facilitated, they can unleash such potential. This development potential will cause magnificent economic progress and social development if the poor are organized in homogenous women institutions and receive opportunities for capacity building support in the form of training, coaching, and advice.

Self-Help Group (SHG) is an informal association of poor women in a community with a common objective of working together for their economic and social and overall empowerment.
The outcomes sought at the SHG level is that members who were initially very poor develop economically and socially; are able to meet their basic needs and their social capital is enhanced.
A well-functioning SHG should display the following basic qualities:
- Convene for regular weekly meetings (the meetings are moderated by rotational chairpersonship of the members.)
- Garner regular weekly savings (agreed amounts are saved regularly)
- Provide internal lending (members take loans from own capital )
- Establish Recordkeeping (keep records of books, financial transaction, minutes, individual records and etc.)
- Members start to engage in profit-oriented /business activities.