Conclusions
The very definition of the informal sector makes the task of data collection, record keeping, and monitoring very diffi- cult and this explains the lack of data on the informal sector. It is here that fine-grained studies of household cash flows like those obtained through financial diaries have an advantage. Combining quantitative with qualitative data, this methodology is able to generate thick descriptions of the respondents. In our work in Ramanagaram, we were able to cover several aspects of informal businesses that would have escaped data obtained through surveys. The various informal businesses among the poor are often seen less as a testimony of their entrepreneurial spirit, and more as a symptom of the failure of the economy to provide them with jobs (Banerjee & Duflo, 2011). By analysing the business cash flows of four such entrepreneurs in detail, we learnt that the story is more nuanced than that. Financial products and services made to serve such businesses often hamper this cause, due to the lack of effort spent in understanding the nature of such businesses. We deal in great detail here with one such product – micro-credit. The microfinance movement, by forming joint liability groups (JLGs) and self-help groups (SHGs) among the poor, has pioneered the cause of financial inclusion, as there is still a woeful lack of access to formal finance for the poor. In our own study-area, for example, there were branches of at least two nationalized banks within a vicinity of one square kilometre and yet none of our seven respondents had a bank account. However, there is a need to go beyond standardized microfinance loans, especially for those among the poor who are involved in informal businesses. By dovetailing the cash inflows from business to loan repayments, we were able to show that a standardized microfinance loan was unsuited to their business cash flows. This also focussed on various aspects of the loan – the size, the repayment schedules, and the time period needed for repayments. The MFI movement is based on provision of hassle-free credit to the informal businesses of the poor. A uniform, “cookie-cutter” product, while serving the cash-flow needs of the MFIs, is at odds with the needs of their clients.
