Social Business- A New Paradigm of Women Empowerment and Poverty Alleviation in Bangladesh: A Study of Two Villages

Abstract

Basically, the study was conducted amid the social business beneficiaries based on the broad objective of exploring the present condition of social business and its success in reducing poverty and empowering women at Dhaka and Khulna Division in Bangladesh. To attain this objective the research has been guided by the following specific objectives-1. To know the socio-economic and demographic information of the respondent, 2. To explore a national and international dynamics and nature, origin, diffusion, and present condition of social business in the rural community, 3. To assesses livelihood patterns, education, mobility, and multidimensional impacts of social business on the weaker section of the rural community, 4. To evaluate the retrospect and prospect of social business in the field of sustainable development, 5. How does social business be effective for empowering the woman and reducing the poverty level of the rural community and find out the strength and weakness of the social business. The study has been employed qualitative and quantitative research methods. Selected 300 respondents are involved with social business through using the purposive sampling method for the study. In the procedure of exploring some intensive and crucial findings have come from the study. Findings of the study show that 62.33% of the people mentioned interest rate of micro-credit is a major problem of Bangladesh in loan sectors. Most of the social business beneficiaries are so much keen to expand social business entrepreneurship all over the country. They also think that social business is more poor-friendly than a traditional business. It also reveals that people’s negative attitude towards micro-credit is not a fantasy, it is reality. Most people treat the loan as a long-lasting suffering. Afterward, the promising findings of the study show that the opportunity of social business has been used in unproductive areas. For this reason, in some cases, social business beneficiaries lose their belongings and last bit of life-saving assets. Although those who use the social business opportunity in a proper way, they can easily shine their own business and initiatives. The findings of the study show that the coordination of social business enterprise and Government organizations is not up to the mark. Hereby the coordination and collaboration between GO and NGO must have to be needed. Government should revise the previous provision of social enterprise and should formulate new social policies and legislations to eradicate the social problems and sustainable social development.