CHAPTER ONE:

INTRODUCTION

1. BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

The concept of `Self-Help Groups` (SHG) has been given various definitions by different authors. Ghadoliya (2008) remarked that SHG is an instrument of economic empowerment.  SHG is a small voluntarily association of poor people, preferably from the same socio-economic the background that come together for the purpose of solving their common problems through self-help. Malhar (2009) saw SHGs as small groups of people facing similar problems, helping each other to solve these problems with a reasonably educated but helpful local person taking the lead in mobilizing them. Paul (2011) described SHGs as groups of rural poor comprising of small/marginal farmers, landless agricultural laborers, rural artisans, womenfolk and other micro-entrepreneurs who organize themselves for socio-economic development by raising, at their level, initial capital supplemented in some cases by funds from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as seed money for issuing small emergency loans either for consumption or production purposes or for linking with bank with the help of NGOs. A general definition suggested by Lawal (2000) is that SHGs are groups of farmers or such entrepreneurs who voluntarily organized themselves and who utilized their own resources to undertake social and economic activities in order to address their common needs.

Most communities in Nigeria have awakened to seek ways to satisfy their own needs. The understanding that government does not have the resources to provide for all their needs is the driving force towards this move which has been successful and has led to the growth of such communities (Ali, 2006; Ayuba, 2006; Paul, 2011). Therefore, SHGs exist for development purposes, particularly in the rural areas.

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