The Potential Of Microfinance In Increasing Financial Access To Kenya's Unbanked Population A Case Study Of Islamic Microfinance In Nairobi, Kenya.

Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background A study conducted in 2008 by CGAP revealed that globally, an estimated 72 percent of people living in Muslim-majority countries did not use formal financial services. Even where financial services were available, some people viewed conventional products as incompatible with the sharia financial principles set forth in Islamic law (CGAP, 2008). Islamic microfinance represents the confluence of two rapidly growing industries: microfinance and Islamic finance. It has the potential to not only respond to unmet demand but also to combine the Islamic social prin…