Grameen Bank Borrowers' Empowerment

The author researches women borrowers of Grameen Bank family space and public space development in patriarchal Bangladesh. He explores their familial decision-making practices around the management of income and expenditures like food, children's education, dowry and teenage marriages and their engagement in community activities such as exploring the degree of freedom women are granted to visit public places like schools, local councils, banks and markets. Moreover, he examines the role the Grameen Bank's Sixteen Decisions, an educational program designed to empower women in the family and community. Moreover, the author examines the role of the Grameen Bank's Sixteen Decisions, an educational program designed to empower women in the family and community. Although the study finds the Grameen Bank program has had a positive impact upon the borrowers' relations in the family and community, a revision of the Sixteen Decisions is suggested through the study that addresses gender inequality more directly.