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CEDAW and the Law:
Nevertheless, there are some indications of improvement on women’s access to credit.
It has been reported that, as of December 2002, female households account for 60 percent of
the total borrowers of credit funds, an increase by more than 20 percent as compared to
1999. 643 Although good, women’s borrowings tend to be for small loans. 644 Hence, in terms of
total amount borrowed, women fall below the total amount of men’s borrowings.
The lack of any capital or property to offer as collateral is identified as one of the major
impediments for women to access credit; 645 for example, a MARD study of female-headed
households in rural areas found that a lack of working capital was identified as the most
serious challenge faced by female heads of household. 646 Another study highlighted that LUCs
are important to access credit, especially when they are in name of the person seeking
credit. 647 Ensuring equality in the realm of property rights, including in relation to LUCs, are a
critical area of intervention. See Part V.12.3, Indicator 105 for specific discussion and
recommendations on this issue.
Some further observations are as follows. As most common loans for women are
informal, such as loans from relatives (approximately 27 percent of all loans) and other private
lenders (approximately 24 percent of all loans), they are subjected to higher interest rates,
which in manysituations is reflective of the lack of collateral-based lending. 648 In cases where
mass organizations, such as Viet Nam Women’s Union, may sponsor the credit applications,
many women can be excluded if they are not members; for example, ethnic minority women
tend not to be members. 649 Also, women after borrowing can often have limited understanding
and inadequate management skills and lack of capacity in formulating effective business and
production plans. 650 Where women are part of a male-headed household, difficulties arise
when income is not equally accessed, shared or controlled; for example, if the husband
withholds money for purposes that do not benefit the family such as gambling. 651 Also,
although it is good to see alternative and specialized sources of funding, especially informal
sources, ensuring equality of access to credit at the formal level is important to pursue.
V.12.3,
Recommendations: See recommendations in Part V.10.3, Indicator 94 and Part
282
643
Combined Fifth and Sixth Periodic Report, p. 41
644
Asian Development Bank, ‘Country Briefing Paper: Women in Viet Nam’ Regional and Sustainable Development
Department and Mekong Department, Asian Development Bank, Manila, 2002 (ADB Paper), p. 22
645
See, for example, World Bank Assessment, p. 25
646
Wells, op. cit., p. 27
647
Lee, Sunhwa, ‘A Gender Analysis of The 2004 Viet Nam Household Living Standard Survey’, http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTVIETNAM/Resources/GenderAnalysisREVISEDSunhwa.doc,
Unpublished, April 20, 2006, p. 27
648
ADB Paper, p. 22 and 23
649
Wells, op. cit., p. 27
650
Combined Fifth and Sixth Periodic Report, p. 41
651
Wells, op. cit., p. 28
Review of key legal documents and compliance with CEDAW