A socio-economic study of the borrowing process: The case of microentrepreneurs in Jordan

Abstract

This paper investigates the socio-economic determinants of four stages of borrowing process of the Jordanian microfinance market. The equations and functions corresponding to the stages of the borrowing process are estimated using a sample of 474 microentrepreneurs. The main results are as follow: variables that reflect the repayment ability are the main determinants of credit rationing in the microfinance market; religious beliefs, social responsibilities, availability of local microfinance providers, application costs, level of knowledge about microfinance providers significantly affect the borrowing process of microentrepreneurs. Credit rationing is found to be a problem for some applicants, but not for the majority.