Social Performance Of Microfinance Institutions in South Asian Region: A Case Study of India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka

Over the years, microfinance institutions (MFIs) have been propagated for poverty alleviation and support to the underserved area. Different objectives discussed in the literature in regard to these institutions include poverty alleviation, financial efficiency, sustainability and social performance. The last one of these objectives, namely social performance has been least explored the least. This is owing largely to best and agreeable measurement methods. Questions float around the issues whether it should be only qualitative or could be satisfactorily measured quantitatively. In this paper we use the quantitative method. This is in line with some of the seminal studies that have deployed a social measurement index. We calculate and apply this social performance index. We use panel and logistic regressions to explore the impact of other important variables on social performance. Using the data for the years 2009-2014 for 88, 27, 25 and 15 MFIs in four south Asian countries namely, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka respectively. Our results compare among these countries as well as other studies in the South Asian nations. The results indicate that assets and profitability position and maturity of MFIs play an important role in performing socially and there is no conflict between social performance, efficiency and sustainability of MFIs.