Zenebe B. Uraguchi

Five years ago, we decided to document our understanding and experiences of financial inclusion in the form of a book. The idea was conceived in a small restaurant in one of the backroads around Gulshan. Insulated from the active streets, it is easy to forget you are in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

Lasting empowerment for women requires a more serious and honest effort to understand and support change among men who are integral to their lives. This is so important in societies as highly patriarchal as Ethiopia.

Development practitioners are under increasing pressure to demonstrate that their work is relevant and it contributes to sustainably addressing poverty and unemployment. For this, they report and tell stories to a range of stakeholders.

There are concerns about an overemphasis on economic growth in systemic approaches to programme design and management (also known as market systems development – MSD), which many people feel pays insufficient attention to, or even willfully ignores the environment.