MICROCREDIT AS A CATALYST FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: A BIBLIOMETRIC REVIEW BEYOND FINANCIAL INCLUSION
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJEMP.935010Keywords:
Microcredit, Financial Inclusion, Economic Development, BibliometricAbstract
This study examines the development of scholarly research on microcredit and its role in promoting economic development through a bibliometric perspective. While microfinance research has traditionally focused on financial inclusion, recent studies increasingly position microcredit within broader development frameworks, including Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), inclusive growth, social capital development, and sustainable finance. Despite the growing importance of these perspectives, the intellectual evolution of microcredit research remains fragmented. Therefore, this study maps the development of scholarly knowledge on microcredit and economic development, identifying major research themes, influential contributions, and emerging directions that reflect the transition of microcredit from a financial inclusion mechanism to a multidimensional instrument of sustainable and inclusive development. Data for the study were retrieved from the Scopus database, resulting in 246 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 1996 and 2025. Bibliometric techniques were employed using Harzing’s Publish or Perish and VOSviewer to examine publication growth, citation performance, subject area trends, and keyword co-occurrence patterns within the literature. The findings indicate that research on microcredit and economic development recorded a significant increase in publication output towards 2025, reflecting growing scholarly interest in sustainable development, financial inclusion, and inclusive growth agendas. The dataset consisted entirely of English-language journal articles that recorded a strong citation impact, averaging 19.28 citations per article. Social Sciences and Economics emerged as the dominant subject areas, while the increasing presence of Environmental Science indicates a rising interest in green microfinance and climate-related financing initiatives. Keyword analysis further revealed that themes such as women’s empowerment and social capital are central to understanding how microcredit contributes to broader economic and social transformation, particularly in developing regions such as South Asia and Africa. This study contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating how microcredit research has expanded beyond conventional banking and financial inclusion perspectives towards a more multidimensional development framework. The study also highlights emerging research directions, particularly the integration of FinTech and climate-responsive financing within the evolving “Microcredit Plus” approach.
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