An increase in the number of women business correspondents (BC) through, say, 33 per cent reservation can alter the country’s socio-economic fabric meaningfully, according to State Bank of India’s economic research department (ERD).
Women BC agents will bring in more transparency as “they have more patience and are more willing to address queries or explain product features”, the ERD team opined in a report.
“They are more likely to serve customers in remote areas, elderly customers, and other under-served customers, and women agent networks could offer a mix of advantages, such as encouraging savings among women, onboarding more first-time female users, low-value but high-frequency transactions, and doorstep delivery of financial services,” said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser, SBI.
The activities undertaken by BCs include (i) disbursal of small-value credit; (ii) recovery of principal/ collection of interest; (iii) collection of small-value deposits; (iv) sale of micro-insurance/ mutual fund products/ pension products/ other third-party products; and (v) receipt and delivery of small-value remittances/ other payment instruments.
Women in micro-unit development
Increasing women’s participation in the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), which addresses the funding needs of micro units/ entrepreneurs, has helped improve the financial situation of women borrowers, the ERD said.
In the last six years (FY23 over FY16), while PMMY disbursement per woman increased to Rs 49,157 (Rs 22,872 in March 2016), the per woman deposits increased to Rs 42,500 (Rs 37,494), as per the report.
Thus, PMMY is an effective tool for women’s empowerment at the grassroots, it added.