The discourse of institutional change in the Zambian microfinance sector

Siwale, J ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6315-0896 and Kimmitt, J ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1121-5181, 2019. The discourse of institutional change in the Zambian microfinance sector. Africa Journal of Management, 5 (1), pp. 47-78. ISSN 2332-2373

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Abstract

This paper investigates the discourse of key actors instigating institutional change in the Zambian microfinance sector. It draws from the institutional story of Zambia, which has experienced regulatory and legislative flux since drafting its first microfinance act in 2006. Building on the ideas of discursive institutionalism and interviews with key stakeholders, it identifies three levels of discourse (ideas) that explain institutional change: policy, programmatic and philosophical. It highlights how ill-conceived discourse at a policy level shapes practices of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) and ultimately challenge their worldviews; offering a cautious tale of institutional change in Zambia. More broadly, it discusses the implications of using discourse to understand institutional change in Sub-Saharan Africa and offers an opposing cautious narrative to many of the successful microfinance stories in the continent which tend to dominate the literature.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Africa Journal of Management
Creators:	Siwale, J. and Kimmitt, J.
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Date:	2019
Volume:	5
Number:	1
ISSN:	2332-2373
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1080/23322373.2018.1563463 DOI 685861 Other
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Business School
Record created by:	Linda Sullivan
Date Added:	29 Nov 2018 16:16
Last Modified:	31 May 2021 15:17
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/35182

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