Indicators Of Women's Empowerment Research Articles

Determinants of Women's Empowerment in Nigeria

Empowering women entails fortifying women to make crucial choices across various issues in an economy. This study investigated the socioeconomic determinants of women's empowerment status in Nigeria. Secondary data from 17,677 respondents were sourced from the National Health Demographic Survey (NDHS) 2018 and were analyzed using descriptive statistics to describe women's socioeconomic characteristics and the women empowerment indicators, Women Empowerment Index (WEI) to determine the level of women empowerment and probit regression to identify and examine the determinants of women empowerment in Nigeria. Results showed an average age of 33 years for Nigerian women, many were Muslims, had a household size of 1-5 persons, had no formal education, belonged to the richest group of the wealth quintile, resided in the rural area, and the majority were married. Also, the majority were employed and earned in cash, but more than half were poorly empowered. Furthermore, at p<0.05, being employed, educated, an urban resident, a service provider, earning more than husband, and respondent’s age positively influence women empowerment, while household size, being a farmer, married woman, traditionalist, and residing in the Northeast, Southeast, South-south, and Southwest negatively influence women empowerment status in Nigeria. Thus, the study recommends the organization of awareness programs about the importance of women's participation in decision-making at the household level and the society at large, and that governments and NGOs should strive more for gender equality and empower women to reach their full potential

An Econometric Study Using Panel Data Model of Factors Affecting Women's Economic Empowerment for Some Countries During the Period (2000-2023)

Objectives: The study aimed to use the analytical and standard method in analyzing the results of the study based on the analysis of factors affecting the economic empowerment of women in some countries during the period (2000-2023). Methods: To investigate the relationships between variables, the Panel Data model has Been Described to express the relationship between the female employment rate as a Dependent variable and women's empowerment indicators as independent variables. The study sample consisted of five countries, including Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Egypt, India and South Africa. The data were estimated using three models: the aggregate regression model, the static effects, and the random effects model. Results: The results showed that the fixed effects model is the most appropriate model for this study. Using the statistical program E-views12. Conclusion: The study found the following: It is expected to have an inverse relationship between the female unemployment rate and the female employment rate (FE) - as a dependent variable - and a positive relationship between the female labor force rate and FE. Contrary to expectations, it was found that there is a positive relationship between the female mortality rate and the dependent variable, in addition to the dependent variable not affected by the age dependency ratio of males.

Challenges and Strategies for Women Empowerment in India: Facts and Realities.

In today’s world women empowerment is an important issue of discussion because in every sector we find women which constitute half of the total population in the world are lacking behind. If about half of the nation's human resources are neglected, the overall progress of the country would obviously be hampered. Women empowerment has become one of the most central concerns and need of the hour but in reality, the situation is not good enough. In the traditional patriarchal society, women have been given a secondary status which is reflected in the economic, social and political spheres. However, women equality and empowerment has always remained a priority area and has been taken utmost care by stake holders. Gender mainstreaming propels progress towards the ultimate goal of attaining gender equality and women empowerment. In this direction policies and programmes at different levels to cover various proportions and strategies of gender development have been framed by the government of India. The paper critically examines women empowerment in India, various challenges and strategies. The paper discusses constitutional safe guards as well as plans and programmes by the government and their implementation, indicators of women empowerment in India. Finally, this paper is an attempt to examine the status of women in India and provides some policy suggestions for women empowerment.

Do Women Empowerment and Intimate Partner Violence Go Hand in Hand? Evidence from India

We examine the effect of women empowerment as indicated by women’s education level, employment status and autonomy on the odds of intimate partner violence (IPV) in India using NFHS-III and NFHS-IV unit-level data. We find that the indicators of women empowerment do not always affect the odds of physical and sexual violence in the same manner. Our study shows that women’s level of education and the odds of sexual violence by their intimate partner show an inverted-U-type association. Education’s mitigating effects on violence are weakening over the decade under inquiry. Earning for the household does not provide respite to women from IPV as working women have a higher likelihood of IPV, which has not declined over the decade studied. However, women’s autonomy negatively affects the odds of IPV.

Women empowerment and health insurance utilisation in Rwanda: a nationwide cross-sectional survey

BackgroundHealth insurance coverage is one of the several measures being implemented to reduce the inequity in access to quality health services among vulnerable groups. Although women’s empowerment has been viewed as a cost-effective strategy for the reduction of maternal and child morbidity and mortality, as it enables women to tackle the barriers to accessing healthcare, its association with health insurance usage has been barely investigated. Our study aims at examining the prevalence of health insurance utilisation and its association with women empowerment as well as other socio-demographic factors among Rwandan women.MethodsWe used Rwanda Demographic and Health Survey (RDHS) 2020 data of 14,634 women aged 15–49 years, who were selected using multistage sampling. Health insurance utilisation, the outcome variable was a binary response (yes/no), while women empowerment was assessed by four composite indicators; exposure to mass media, decision making, economic and sexual empowerment. We conducted multivariable logistic regression to explore its association with socio-demographic factors, using SPSS (version 25).ResultsOut of the 14,634 women, 12,095 (82.6%) (95% CI 82.0–83.2) had health insurance, and the majority (77.2%) were covered by mutual/community organization insurance. Women empowerment indicators had a negative association with health insurance utilisation; low (AOR = 0.85, 95% CI 0.73–0.98) and high (AOR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.52–0.85) exposure to mass media, high decision making (AOR = 0.78, 95% CI 0.68–0.91) and high economic empowerment (AOR = 0.63, 95% CI 0.51–0.78). Other socio-demographic factors found significant include; educational level, wealth index, and household size which had a negative association, but residence and region with a positive association.ConclusionsA high proportion of Rwandan women had health insurance, but it was negatively associated with women’s empowerment. Therefore, tailoring mass-media material considering the specific knowledge gaps to addressing misinformation, as well as addressing regional imbalance by improving women’s access to health facilities/services are key in increasing coverage of health insurance among women in Rwanda.

Women empowerment and sexually transmitted infections: Evidence from Bangladesh demographic and health survey 2014.

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among women have led to substantial public health and economic burdens in several low-middle-income countries. However, there is a paucity of scientific knowledge about the relationship between empowerment and symptoms of STIs among married Bangladeshi women. This article aimed to examine the association between women empowerment and symptoms of STIs among currently married Bangladeshi women of reproductive age. We extracted data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS), conducted from June 28, 2014, to November 9, 2014. We utilised cross-tabulation, the conceptual framework and multivariable multilevel mixed-effect logistics regression to explore the association between women's empowerment indicators and women's self-reported symptoms of genital sore and abnormal genital discharge. All of the analysis was adjusted using cluster weight. We found that among 16,858 currently married women, 5.59% and 10.84% experienced genital sores and abnormal genital discharge during the past 12 months, respectively. Women who depended on husbands to make decisions regarding their health care (AOR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.67-0.84), significant household purchases (AOR = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.71-0.88), and visiting family or relatives (AOR = 0.72, 95% CI = 0.64-0.80) were less likely to report signs of abnormal genital discharge. Women who could make joint healthcare decisions with their husbands were also less likely to report genital sores (AOR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.67-0.90). Genital sores and abnormal genital discharge were prevalent across all parameters of women empowerment among currently married women in Bangladesh. Our estimates show that the husband plays a significant role in decision-making about sexual and reproductive health. Efforts need to be invested in establishing culturally relevant gender policies which facilitate the involvement of women in joint decision-making.

Effective linkages between women empowerment and economic development in India

Economic development without empowerment of women is hardly possible for a developing country like India. The present study tries to explore the current scenario of women empowerment in India and sketches the interface between this phenomenon and the economic development of India. It is based on the secondary data, which are collected from various reports related to human development index, Election Commission of India, General Register of India, etc. Using the statistical data regarding economic development and women empowerment, and employing multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA, i.e., Pearson product moment correlation coefficient), the obtained results show that economic development and women empowerment correlates each other in developing countries like India. The findings also indicate that the variance explained by women empowerment indicators is higher than one of the economic development indicators. On the basis of the empirical results of this research, we recommend that women empowerment should be considered by the competent authorities as well as the government, and be given the top priority that it deserves for its positive effects on the development of countries like India.

Do women empowerment indicators predict receipt of quality antenatal care in Cameroon? Evidence from a nationwide survey

BackgroundWorld Health Organisation (WHO) recommends quality antenatal care (ANC) for all pregnant women, as one of the strategies for achieving targets 3.1 and 3.2 of the sustainable development goals. Maternal mortality ratio remains high in Cameroon (782 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births). Extant literature suggest a positive association between women empowerment indicators and maternal healthcare utilisation in general. In Cameroon, this association has not received scholarly attention. To fill this knowledge gap, we investigated the association between women empowerment indicators and quality ANC in Cameroon.MethodsData of 4615 women of reproductive age were analysed from the women’s file of the 2018 Cameroon Demographic and Health Survey. Quality ANC (measured by six indicators) was the outcome of interest. Binary Logistic Regression was conducted. All results of the Binary Logistic Regression analysis were presented as adjusted odds ratios (aORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). All analyses were done using Stata version 14.ResultsIn all, 13.5% of the respondents received quality ANC. Women with low knowledge level (aOR = 0.66, CI 0.45, 0.98) had a lesser likelihood of receiving quality ANC compared to those with medium knowledge level. Women who highly approved wife beating (aOR = 0.54, CI 0.35, 0.83) had lesser odds of receiving quality ANC compared to those with low approval of wife beating.ConclusionThe study has pointed to the need for multifaceted approaches aimed at enhancing the knowledge base of women. The Ministry of Public Health should collaborate and intensify female’s reproductive health education. The study suggests that women advocacy and maternal healthcare interventions in Cameroon must strive to identify women who approve of wife beating and motivate them to disapprove all forms of violence.

Determinants of women\u2019s empowerment in Pakistan: evidence from Demographic and Health Surveys, 2012\u201313 and 2017\u201318

BackgroundWomen’s empowerment has always remained a contested issue in the complex socio-demographic and cultural milieu of Pakistani society. Women are ranked lower than men on all vital human development indicators. Therefore, studying various determinants of women’s empowerment is urgently needed in the Pakistani context.MethodsThe study empirically operationalized the concept of women’s empowerment and investigated its determinants through representative secondary data taken from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Surveys among women at reproductive age (15–49 years) in 2012–13 (n = 13,558) and 2017–18 (n = 15,068). The study used simple binary logistic and multivariable regression analyses.ResultsThe results of the binary logistic regression highlighted that almost all of the selected demographic, economic, social, and access to information variables were significantly associated with women’s empowerment (p < 0.05) in both PDHS datasets. In the multivariable regression analysis, the adjusted odds ratios highlighted that reproductive-age women in higher age groups having children, with a higher level of education and wealth index, involved in skilled work, who were the head of household, and had access to information were reported to be more empowered.Results of the multivariable regression analysis conducted separately for two empowerment indicators (decision-making and ownership) corroborated the findings of the one indicator of women empowerment, except where ownership did not appear to be significantly associated with number of children and sex of household head in both data sets (2012–13 and 2017–18).ConclusionsA number of social, economic, demographic, familial, and information-exposure factors determine women’s empowerment. The study proposes some evidence-based policy options to improve the status of women in Pakistan.

Women empowerment indicators and uptake of child health services in sub-Saharan Africa: a multilevel analysis using cross-sectional data from 26 countries.

The sustainable development goal 3, target 2, seeks to reduce under-five mortality to as low as 25 deaths per 1000 live births by 2030. As such, seeking child health services has become a priority concern for all countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Evidence suggests that empowered women are more likely to seek child health services. Hence, this study examined the association between women empowerment indicators and uptake of child health services in SSA. The study used data from the Demographic and Health Surveys of 26 SSA countries, which were conducted between 2010 and 2019. Two different samples were considered in the study: a total of 12961 children within the vaccination age of 12-23, and 9489 children under age 5 with diarrhoea symptoms in the last 2 weeks before the survey. Women empowerment indicators comprised disagreement with reasons to justify wife beating, decision-making power and knowledge level, while child health services constituted complete vaccination uptake and seeking diarrhoea treatment. Frequencies, percentages and multivariable, multilevel binary logistic regression models were employed. The study shows that women with high decision-making power [adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=1.20, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.07, 1.35] had higher odds of seeking treatment for childhood diarrhoea compared to those with low decision-making power. It was also observed that among children aged 12-23months [AOR=1.28, 95% CI=1.14, 1.43], mothers had higher odds of seeking diarrhoea treatment for them compared to those who were aged less than 12months. Children whose mothers had medium decision-making power [AOR=1.30, 95% CI=1.19, 1.41] were more likely to seek complete immunization for their children compared to those with low decision-making power. Also, those with medium [AOR=1.19, 95% CI=1.07, 1.31] and high knowledge [AOR=1.25, 95% CI=1.10, 1.42] had higher odds of completing immunization for their children compared to those with low knowledge. Women with medium acceptance had lower odds [AOR=0.76, 95% CI=0.67, 0.83] of completing immunization for their children compared with those with low acceptance of wife beating. This study has demonstrated a strong association between women empowerment indicators and the uptake of child health services. Therefore, efforts should be made to seek policy tools to empower women to help improve the well-being of women and the children they care for.

Towards Sustainable Development: Role of the Housing Fund Program for the Poor in Bangladesh

The word home is associated with the place where people can rest their heads at the end of the day. But in a developing country like Bangladesh, there are still many people who are homeless. Although there are different types of home loans available for the homeless. However, this study focused on the Grihayan Tahobil Program which was set up to provide housing loans to the extremely poor who have very limited incomes, who live in urban slums or who have become homeless as a result of river erosion. The main goal of this study is to evaluate how the social economic development issues change because of the government housing loan program (Grihayan Tahobil) in the Bangladesh to help ensure sustainable development goals. This study mainly based on primary and secondary data and primary data were collected from sample respondents through a structured questionnaire via face to face interview. Data on perception of household head on the changes in social status, health status of the respondent household head, difference in the indicator of women empowerment, food standard, children education and access to clean water and sanitation were collected through this survey. This study used systematic random sampling techniques. A total of 5 NGOs from all over the Dhaka division has been selected randomly. With the help of these 5 NGOs, 190 beneficiary households and 70 non beneficiary households have selected systematically from the five different districts for the survey. All of the findings indicate that after having an access of housing fund loan for a house, it is likely to report changes in their social status. The study finds that 90 percent of the program beneficiary households have enjoyed a positive change in their social status. The results also indicate that a new house not only improves the socio-economic condition of the program beneficiary household but also it is helping Bangladesh moving towards to sustainable development.

Effectiveness Of Microfinance On Empowerment Of Women

This paper makes an attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of microfinance on empowerment of women. A cross-sectional research on 115 women in the State of Tamil Nadu, India through a structured questionnaire was conducted. Population of study is women who are associated with Self Help Groups (SHG’s). These women are married and have at least one child. Exploratory factor analysis is used to study the indicators of women empowerment. Results reveal that indicators of women empowerment are household economic decision making, legal awareness, mobility, economic security and family decision making. Five hypotheses are developed to evaluate the effectiveness of microfinance on empowerment of women for mentioned five indicators. Paired samples t test is used to know the difference in women’s perception before joining microfinance program and after joining microfinance program. The findings of this study reveal that microfinance is a powerful tool in enhancing women empowerment for its all indicators like household economic decision making, legal awareness, mobility, economic security and family decision making.

The Effect of "Women's Empowerment" on Child Nutritional Status in Pakistan.

Women’s empowerment in terms of both involvements in employment activities and with decision-making about household activities is the most evident factors that can affect the nutritional and health status of their children. This paper investigates the effect of women’s empowerment (WE) on children’s nutritional (CN) status in Pakistan. The Pakistan demographic health survey (PDHS 2012-13) cross-sectional data was used to analyze the impacts of WE on child malnutrition. The composite index of anthropometric failure (CIAF) was used as a dependent variable to measure the children’s nutritional status, and the wealth index household size. The number of children in a house and indicators of women empowerment, which included the mother’s education, employment status, and the household decision-making, were used as the independent variables. The method of binary logistic regression with marginal effects was used for the empirical analysis of the results. The results of the study showed the indicators of women’s empowerment, such as the education of the mother and employment status had a negative relationship with child malnutrition. Women’s decision-making about the visits to family, which is an indicator of WE, had an insignificant effect on CN. Similarly, socioeconomic status, which included the wealth index, also caused a reduction in child malnutrition. In addition, an increase in household size had a positive and significant relation to child malnutrition. Women are the primary caretakers of children in the household, and their intra-household dynamics affect the well-being of individuals. The empowerment of women acts as a means to enhance children’s nutritional status, which causes important developmental outcomes.

Role of Women's Empowerment in Child Nutrition Outcomes: A Systematic Review

Women's empowerment has gained attention as critical for child nutrition during the first 1000 days of life. However, the ways in which various women's empowerment measures are applied and the evidence for how they are differentially related to child nutrition is unclear. In this systematic review, therefore, we 1) systematically parse the many ways in which women's empowerment has been quantitatively measured in the context of child nutrition through the use of a theoretically driven application of dimensions and domains of empowerment; 2) summarize evidence for each of the various pathways between women's empowerment and child nutrition, based on dimensions and domains of empowerment; and 3) offer suggestions for future research to better articulate the relationship between women's empowerment and child nutrition. A search of evidence yielded 62 quantitative studies that used 200 unique indicators of women's empowerment, tested in 1316 associations with various child nutrition outcomes. Despite the large number of unique indicators, indicators for time resource allocation and reproductive decisions and indicators for men's engagement in child care and nutrition, all pertinent to child nutrition, were missing. Overall, the findings indicated an inconclusive relationship between women's empowerment and child nutrition: 379 out of 461 (82% weighted) and 217 out of 258 (84% weighted) associations found with stunting and wasting outcomes, respectively, were not significant. The current lack of evidence is likely not due to the absence of an underlying relationship between women's empowerment and child nutrition, but rather limitations in study design. Future research should carefully select women's empowerment indicators in context-specific ways, aggregate them meaningfully, and use a longitudinal study design to conduct pathway and lifecycle analysis in appropriate populations to clarify the relationship between women's empowerment and child nutrition.

Impact of Microcredit on Women Empowerment Indicators: An empirical reserach in the state of Uttarakhand

Women Empowerment has been on national agenda of every government. In developing nation women comprises fifty percent of the population so empowering them is crucial for development and nation building. Various Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) extends microcredit/loan via group model (Self Help Groups and Joint Liability Groups) to the marginalised segment particularly women groups and minorities primarily residing in rural areas with an aim to empower them and foster their socio-economic development. Previous studies have shown that microcredit has positive impact, but providing credit alone does not guarantee empowerment of the member beneficiaries. From past studies it can be concluded that empowerment demand an integrated approach from all the participating bodies/institutions involved, only then can be the objective of socio-economic development be accomplished. Since today very limited literature is available on microcredit and its impact. The current research examines the impact of microcredit on women empowerment indicators (decision making, awareness and psychological factors) of member beneficiaries in Haridwar district of Uttarakand. Women are organized into groups (Joint Liability Groups) and provided microcredit /loan. Non Probability sampling (Convenience Sampling) technique is adopted in sample selection where access to microcredit serves as independent variable and women empowerment indicators serves as dependent variables. The study consists of sample size of 362 member beneficiaries. Hypothesis testing is applied to find the significant association between the dependent and independent variables. Inferential statistics i.e Chi sq test is used to find the association/relationship between access to microcredit and empowerment indicators. Results indicate that there is no association between access to microcredit and women empowerment indicators. The results indicate that microcredit vial JLGs makes no impact on the empowerment indicators, making no improvement in the lives of its beneficiaries. There is need of regular and continuous impact assessment by credit institutions, participation from states and local bodies, must be analysis of socio-cultural factors and formation of women self administered system are some of the recommendations of the study. The results can be used by various stakeholders in designing better approach and as it provides them information on the areas which needs improvement so that microcredit can bring positive difference in the lives of beneficiaries. Also, it opens doors for further research in order to explore the socio-cultural factors which influence women empowerment.

Contract Farming in Mozambique: Implications for Gender Inequalities Within and Across Rural Households

AbstractThis paper analyses the implications of contract farming for gender inequalities in rural Mozambique. Contract farming is often considered one of the major tools of agribusiness development. It broadly includes those arrangements under which producers commit to providing cash crop to a buyer firm. This paper exploits a panel dataset (2002–2005) collected by the Mozambican Ministry of Agriculture among a nationally representative sample of rural households to explore contracts’ implications for gender equality both across and within households. We look at both the participation of female‐headed households in contracts and the impact of establishing a contract on a set of intra‐household women empowerment indicators. Concerning the first, our results confirm a (small though significant) effect of selection out of contracts of households where a woman is the household’s head. With regard to the second, we expect contrasting effects to be at work: on the one hand, increased income may relax budget constraints improving women’s living conditions, and on the other, we may expect a shift in favour of men of the control over the household’s assets. We find different results according to the indicator used; after controlling for selection bias, we find no effect on control over land but a negative effect on women’s access to extension services.

Impact of Microfinance on Women Empowerment : A Study of Rural Gujarat

Microfinance is considered as an important financial service in many countries. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of microfinance on women empowerment. The paper aimed to judge the societal transformation through strategic interventions of microfinance in rural areas. A total of 384 women staying in rural areas of Mehsana and Navsari district were surveyed. Paired t - test was performed to analyze the situation before and after women joined SHGs for women empowerment on three contexts, that is, political, social, and economic on 12 variables. Paired t - test revealed a significant difference in women empowerment indicators before and after joining SHGs. The results of binary logistic regression revealed that with the increase in duration of membership by 1 year, the probability of empowering women on grounds of economic, social, and political empowerment increased by 9%, 14%, and 11%, respectively. The study can be used to empower women on the grounds of political, social, and economic conditions. The successful implementation of microfinance could lead to societal transformation in rural areas, especially for a country like India. It was suggested that the government and non-government organizations (NGOs) can work on microfinance services to empower women.

Empowerment of Muslim Women in India: A Study of Socio-Economic and Political Disparities

This paper investigates the empowerment of Muslim women in India, vis-a-vis their male counterparts as well as women belonging to other major five religious communities, namely Hindus, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain. The study is based on secondary sources of data primarily obtained from National Family Health Survey-4 (NFHS-4), All India Census Report, 2011 and Statistical reports, Election Commission of India. Based on these data sets, various indicators of women empowerment- participation in household decision making, freedom of movement outside the home, political participation and access to education and meaningful employment are used to measure the different dimensions of empowerment. The findings of the study indicate that the Muslim Women in India are relatively disempowered and they enjoy lower status than that of men and women belonging to other communities, no matter how empowerment is measured, be it in terms of the indicators of the evidence, sources or setting for empowerment. The study reveals that in terms of educational attainment and access to employment, the gender gap is highest in Muslim amongst all major communities in India. The information regarding women’s household decision making power and freedom of movement also shows that Muslim Women are the least empowered and one of the disadvantaged sections of the society in two ways, one being as a woman and two as a member of the minority community which is both educationally and economically backward and religiously orthodox. The study concludes that an improvement in educational level would directly influence Muslim Women’s socio-economic and political status, but achievements towards this end depend largely on the attitude of the people towards gender equality.

Empowering Women through E-Business: A Study on Women Entrepreneurs in Dhaka City

This paper tries to evaluate the effectiveness of e-business on the empowerment of women. A survey has been administered to identify the effects of Women Entrepreneurship through e-business on Women Empowerment related attitudes. I have collected data through a semi-structured questionnaire from a sample of 100 women entrepreneurs operating online businesses located in Dhaka city. 15 employees’ personally interviewed and other 85 respondents were surveyed through e-mail and social network sites. The findings of the study indicate various factors about women empowerment. Results reveal that indicators of women empowerment are mainly (1) Economic Freedom, (2) Greater social independency & acceptability, and (3) Sense of self-worth. Twenty questions are developed to evaluate the effectiveness of e-business on the empowerment of women for mentioned three indicators. The findings of this study reveal that e-business is a powerful tool in enhancing women empowerment. Women believe that e-business is one of the easiest ways to become entrepreneur which is in turn empowering them in different social issues.

Microcredit and Its Impact on Women’s Empowerment: Some Evidence from Moshi, Tanzania

In Tanzania patriarchy prevails and women continue to be relatively disadvantaged compared to men. As a result women position is low, are poorer, have low education and lack self-esteem. Microcredit has shown to be an effective tool for combating these diseases of the poor, but unlike other developing countries its potential has not been fully explored in Tanzania. This population based cross sectional study explores the impact of microcredit programs participation on women’s empowerment. Logistic regression was done to examine association between participation and indicators of women empowerment. Crude and adjusted odds ratios, P-values and 95% CI were computed to show the association. A total of 900 non elderly women were enrolled, participation was found to be significantly associated with age (p<0.001), level of income (p<0.001) and number of living children (p<0.002). Majority of the study participants had primary education (85.1%) and unemployed (92.1%). Low income earners were 40.2%, program participants were 38% mostly in middle level income group (57.7%). Logistic regression to 18 empowerment indicators revealed a significant association at 5% level between program participation and empowerment. We demonstrated a positive association and concluded the strategy travels well and can empower women in Tanzania. However, efforts are needed to make the programs reach the most disadvantaged.