Reframing Microfinance and Financial Inclusion Research: Case Studies and Synthesis

The status of microfinance in international development will remain an important area of research and debate for as long as relatively poor people continue to struggle with access and effective use of financial services. This paper reflects on the evolution of microfinance and financial inclusion as arenas of research, focusing on its scope and on tensions arising from diverse disciplinary framings. It highlights how core research questions are situated on a broader canvas, and argues in favour of unruly case studies to complement and challenge systematic synthesis. The argument is illustrated with reference to material presented at the 2017 European Microfinance Platform conference in Portsmouth, UK, and Financial Inclusion in India conference in New Delhi.