Development, Divinity and Dharma: The Role of Religion in Development and Microfinance Institutions

Faith-based institutions are getting involved in economic development programmes, including microfinance, and many foreign donors are looking to religious organizations for new ways to reach the poorest people. This book considers the work of a number of these, of different faiths, and asks what is 'special' about them. Do religious links make these organizations more or less effective? Should spiritual development and economic upliftment be kept apart? Development, Divinity and Dharma explores these questions by examining a number of Hindu, Christian and Muslim institutions in India and in Pakistan. Its main focus is the Shri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development programme, which though little known outside south India, has changed the lives of almost half a million people, including Hindus, Muslims and Christians, through social and economic development programmes which are motivated by religious faith.

Malcolm Harper is an emeritus professor of Cranfield University; he is an independent researcher, writer and teacher who works mainly in India. He has published on enterprise development and microfinance. He was Chairman of Basix Finance from 1996 until 2006, and is Chairman of M-CRIL, the microfinance credit rating agency and business development, and author of numerous books and articles. He is the co-editor of What's Wrong with Microfinance? (Practical Action, 2007).

D. S. K. Rao is the Regional Organizer for Asia-Pacifi c, Microcredit Summit Campaign. He has 22 years’ experience in rural development banking with NABARD, the apex development financial institution in India. He has published extensively on farmer management of irrigation and self-help groups for the socio-economic empowerment of poor women.

Ashis Kumar Sahu has been a practitioner and researcher in microfinance and livelihoods for about 10 years, and is associated with The Livelihoods School, promoted by BASIX, Sa-Dhan, the Indian Association of Community Development Financial Institutions, RCDC in Orissa and Urmul Trust in Rajasthan.