Kananura Justus, Burns Bridget Fo, Baguma Charles, Mushavi Rumbidzai C, Satinsky Emily N, Kiconco Allen, Namara Elizabeth B, Kamagara Clare, Musinguzi Elijah, Alleluya Owen, Venkataramani Atheendar S, Bangsberg David R, Tsai Alexander C, Kakuhikire Bernard
Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda.
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
J Glob Health. 2025 May 23;15:04074. doi: 10.7189/jogh.15.04074.
Development interventions may promote sustainable livelihoods among participants via improved income generation, health, education, and quality of life. Within the development literature, microfinance institutions (MFIs) provide individuals with funds and/or start-up capital to develop small businesses. However, the evidence on whether MFIs are successful in ensuring sustainable livelihoods is mixed. In this study, we assessed participants' perceptions of the barriers and facilitators to a poultry microenterprise intervention, and the impact of the intervention on enabling sustainable livelihoods for the participants, their families, and their community.
During exit interviews, 30 women who had participated in a poultry microenterprise demonstration project in rural Uganda nine months prior described their experiences in the intervention, including perceived benefits and challenges, and discussed specific factors that impacted their continuity in the project. We analysed the interviews using a content analysis approach.
The participants noted instrumental and interpersonal benefits of the intervention: greater financial security, increased trust from community members, social support, empowerment, and skills-building. Despite these facilitators, challenges precluded some of them from establishing sustainable livelihoods. Pervasive poverty, poultry disease outbreaks, poor spousal/familial support, and challenges in effectively communicating the goal of the intervention stood as barriers to the establishment of sustained poultry businesses. While most participants (n/N = 20/30) reached the final phase of the intervention, only six continued rearing chickens beyond the project.
Barriers and facilitators described by the participants and identified in our analysis bear implications for the design, implementation, and evaluation of microenterprise interventions aimed at providing participants with sustainable livelihoods. Our findings highlight the importance of qualitative research in identifying concerns and informing intervention adaptations.
发展干预措施可通过改善创收、健康、教育和生活质量，促进参与者实现可持续生计。在发展文献中，小额金融机构为个人提供资金和/或启动资金以发展小企业。然而，关于小额金融机构能否成功确保可持续生计的证据并不一致。在本研究中，我们评估了参与者对家禽微型企业干预措施的障碍和促进因素的看法，以及该干预措施对参与者及其家庭和社区实现可持续生计的影响。
在退出访谈中，30名九个月前参与乌干达农村家禽微型企业示范项目的女性描述了她们在干预中的经历，包括感知到的益处和挑战，并讨论了影响她们继续参与该项目的具体因素。我们采用内容分析法对访谈进行了分析。
参与者指出了干预措施在工具性和人际方面的益处：更高的财务安全性、社区成员信任增加、社会支持、赋权和技能培养。尽管有这些促进因素，但挑战使其中一些人无法建立可持续生计。普遍贫困、家禽疾病爆发、配偶/家庭支持不足以及有效传达干预目标方面的挑战，成为建立可持续家禽企业的障碍。虽然大多数参与者（n/N = 20/30）进入了干预的最后阶段，但只有六人在项目结束后继续养鸡。
参与者描述并在我们的分析中确定的障碍和促进因素，对旨在为参与者提供可持续生计的微型企业干预措施的设计、实施和评估具有启示意义。我们的研究结果强调了定性研究在识别问题和为干预调整提供信息方面的重要性。
