Women have been regarded as a disadvantaged group in Nepal (Aoki & Pradhan, 2013), because of the
limited opportunities in these areas, women residing in rural parts of Nepal such as, Kudari VDC in Jumla,
are particularly vulnerable.
The women in Jumla normally are involved in daily household jobs like cooking, cleaning, washing,
feeding the cattle etc. The Maoist insurgency (about a 10 years of war in the country), lack of food supply
and globalization have forced men to migrate to safe places and seek opportunities to earn money. This
significant change however has given the burden of both household jobs and income generating jobs to the
women.
The majority of women are illiterate, but with the initiative of the Government and the cooperation with
numerous INGOs and NGOs these women are given the oppportunity to enter the formal economy
through microcredit programs. Some authors claim that these programs are showing very positive results.
However, other authors claim that the reality of microcredit is that it is less efficient than it promises. That
is why this research empirically explores how these kind of programs are affecting women’s life
particularly in Jumla district, Nepal.