The interplay between official and unofficial laws in rotating savings and credit associations (Eqqub) in Tigray, Ethiopia

Yimer, G. A.; Decock, Wim; Ghebregergs, M. G.; Abera, G. H.; Halibo, G. S.

doi:10.1080/07329113.2017.1407525

Article (Scientific journals)

The interplay between official and unofficial laws in rotating savings and credit associations (Eqqub) in Tigray, Ethiopia

Yimer, G. A.; Decock, Wim; Ghebregergs, M. G. et al.

2018 • In Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law, 50, p. 94-113

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2268/238690

DOI
10.1080/07329113.2017.1407525

Files (1)Send to Details Statistics Bibliography Similar publications

Files

Full Text

The interplay between official and unofficial laws in rotating savings and credit associations Eqqub in Tigray Ethiopia_electronic publication_05012018.pdf

Publisher postprint (672.84 kB)

Request a copy

All documents in ORBi are protected by a user license.

Send to

RIS BibTex APA Chicago Permalink X Linkedin

Details

Abstract :

[en] © 2017 The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law. This article investigates how unofficial and official laws interact in regulating rotating savings and credit associations (ROSCA) in the Tigray Regional State in northern Ethiopia. ROSCAs are informal institutions that provide saving and lending facilities in traditional communities and societies across the world. In Ethiopia, they are known by the name “Eqqub.” First, essential background information on ROSCA will be provided, including references to the existing scientific literature. A second section will clarify the methodology used for the empirical research on “Eqqub” in the Tigray Regional State. The third part of the paper presents the actual findings of that investigation on the ground, especially concentrating on legal issues surrounding the governance of “Eqqub.” One of the main conclusions will be that the regulation of informal credit networks in northern Ethiopia is a paramount example of how normative pluralism works in practice, with official and unofficial laws and institutions interacting in subtle ways to order socio-economic reality.

Disciplines :

Economic & commercial law
Metalaw, Roman law, history of law & comparative law

Author, co-author :

Yimer, G. A.

Decock, Wim ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de droit > Histoire du droit

Ghebregergs, M. G.

Abera, G. H.

Halibo, G. S.

Language :

English

Title :

The interplay between official and unofficial laws in rotating savings and credit associations (Eqqub) in Tigray, Ethiopia

Publication date :

2018

Journal title :

Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law

ISSN :

0732-9113

eISSN :

2305-9931

Publisher :

Taylor & Francis

Volume :

Pages :

94-113

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Available on ORBi :

since 16 August 2019

Statistics

Number of views

43 (1 by ULiège)

Number of downloads

0 (0 by ULiège)

More statistics

Scopus citations^®

Scopus citations^®
without self-citations

OpenCitations

OpenAlex citations

Bibliography

Agegnehu, T., 2013. “The Future of Law and Legal Institutions in Ethiopia.” In Law and Development and Legal Pluralism in Ethiopia, edited by E. N., Stebek and M., Abdo, 89–110. Addis Ababa: Justice and Legal System Research Institute (JLSRI).
Aliber, M., 2001. “Rotating Savings and Credit Associations and the Pursuit of the Self Discipline: A Case Study in South Africa.” African Review of Money, Finance and Banking 51–73.
Ambec, S., and N., Treich. 2003. “Roscas as Financial Agreements to Cope with Social Pressure.” Working Paper 103. Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance.http://www.csef.it/WP/wp103.pdf.
Anderson, R., 1966. “Rotating Credit Associations in India.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 14(3): 344–339.
Anderson, S., J., Baland, and K., Moene. 2009. “Enforcement in Informal Saving Groups.” Journal of Development Economics 90: 14–23.
Ardener, S., 1964. “The Comparative Study of Rotating Credit Associations.” The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland 94(2): 201–229.
Aredo, D., 1993. “The Iddir: A Study of an Indigenous Informal Financial Institution in Ethiopia.” Savings and Development 17(1): 77–90.
Ayalew, D., S., Dercon, and M., Gautam. 2011. “Property Rights in a Very Poor Country: Tenure Insecurity and Investment in Ethiopia.” Agricultural Economics 42: 75–86.
Bascom, R., 1952. “The Esusu: A Credit Institution of the Yorubu.” Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 82(1): 63–69.
Beck, T., and R., Levine. 2005. “Legal Institutions and Financial Development.” In Handbook for New Institutional Economics, edited by C., Ménard and M. M., Shirley, 251–278, Springer. Dordrecht.
Benda Beckmann, F. von, and R., Kirsch. 1999. “Informal Security Systems in Southern Africa and Approaches to Strengthen them Through Policy Measures.” Journal of Social Development in Africa 14(2): 21–38.
Benda Beckmann, F. von, and K., von Benda Beckmann. 2007. Social Security between Past and Future: Ambonese Networks of Care and Support. Münster: LIT.
Besley, T., S., Coate, and G., Loury. 1993. “The Economics of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations.” The American Economic Review 83(4): 792–810.
Besley, T., 1994. “How Do Market Failures Justify Interventions in Rural Credit Markets?” The World Bank Research Observer 9(1): 27–47.
Biggart, N., 2001. “Banking on Each Other: The Situational Logic of Rotating and Saving and Credit Associations.” Advances in Qualitative Organizational Research 3: 129–153.
Bisrat, A., K., Kostas, and L., Feng. 2012. “Are there Financial Benefits to Join RoSCAs?: Empirical Evidence from Equb in Ethiopia.” Procedia Economics and Finance 1: 229–238.
Bouman, J., 1979. “The ROSCA: Financial Technology of an Informal Savings and Credit Institution in Developing Economies.” Savings and Development 3(4): 253–276.
Bousalam, I., and M., Hamzaoui. 2015. “Bank-Based Investing ROSCA for Islamic Finance: A New Alternative to Drain Household Savings and Reduce Financial Exclusion.” MPRA Paper no. 67510.
Brietzke, P., 1974. “Private Law in Ethiopia.” Journal of African Law 18: 149–167.
Campbell, C. D., and S. A., Chang. 1962. “Kyes and Mujins: Financial Intermediaries in South Korea.” Economic Development and Cultural Change, 11 55–68.
Campbell, J., Mwami, J., and M., Ntukula. 1995. “Urban Social Organization: An Exploration of Kinship, Social Networks, Gender Relations and Household and Community in Dar es Salaam.” In Gender, Family and Household in Tanzania, edited by C., Creighton and C. K., Omari, 221–252. Aldershot: Avebury.
Chandavarkar, G., 1985. “Non-Institutional Financial Sector in Developing Countries.” Savings and Development 9(2): 129–141.
Chiteji, S., 2002. “Promises Kept: Enforcement and the Role of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations in an Economy.” Journal of International Development 14: 393–411.
David, R., 1963. “Civil Code for Ethiopia: Considerations on the Codification of the Civil Law in African Countries.” Tulane Law Review 37: 187–204.
David, R., 1967. “Sources of the Ethiopian Civil Code.” Journal of Ethiopian Law 14(2): 341–349.
De Soto, H., 1989. The Other Path: The Invisible Revolution in the Third World. New York: Harper & Row Publishers.
Dekle, R., and K., Hamada. 2000. “On the Development of Rotating Credit Associations in Japan.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 49(1): 77–90.
Dercon, S., R., Vargas Hill, I., Outes-Leon, D., Clarke, and A. S., Taffesse. 2011. “Offering Rainfall Insurance to Informal Insurance Groups: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Ethiopia.” Working Paper F-3031-ETH-1. International Growth Centre (IGC)
Diala, A. C., 2017. “The Concept of Living Customary Law: A Critique.” Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law 49: 143–165.
El Abdaimi, M., 1989. “Le financement informel: problématique, typologie et évaluation à partir d'enquêtes à Marrakech et dans le sud marocain.” Revue Tiers Monde 120: 869–879.
Endeshaw, A., 2006. “Legal Research and Development in the Ethiopian Context.” In Proceedings of the XVth International Conference of Ethiopian Studies, edited by S., Uhlig, 944–952. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
Fichera, E., 2010. “An Analysis of Households’ Credit Markets in Ethiopia and Malawi.” PhD diss., University of Nottingham. http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/11373/1/Thesis.pdf.
Fiseha, A., 2013. “Customary Dispute Resolution Mechanisms and the Rule of Law: Areas of Convergence, Divergence and Implications.” In Law and Development and Legal Pluralism in Ethiopia, edited by E. N., Stebek and M., Abdo, 111–140. Addis Ababa: Justice and Legal System Research Institute (JLSRI).
Gamble, S. D., 1944. “A Chinese Mutual Savings Society.” The Far Eastern Quarterly, 4 41–52.
Gashayie, A., and M., Singh. 2016. “Development of Financial Sector in Ethiopia: Literature Review.” Journal of Economics and Sustainable Development 7(7): 9–20.
Gebeye, B. A., 2017. “Decoding Legal Pluralism in Africa.” The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law 49: 228–249.
Geertz, C., 1962. “The Rotating Credit Association: A Middle Rung in Development.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 10(3): 241–263.
Germidis, D., 1990. “Interlinking the Formal and Informal Financial Sectors in Developing Countries.” Savings and Development 14(1): 5–21.
Ghosh, P, and Ray, D, 2016. “Information and Enforcement in Informal Credit Markets.” Economica 83(359): 59–90.
Gugerty, M., 2007. “You Can't Save Alone: Commitment in Rotating Savings and Credit Associations in Kenya.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 55(2): 251–282.
Hagos, F., 2013. “Law and Development Paradigm.” In Law and Development and Legal Pluralism in Ethiopia, edited by E. N., Stebek and M., Abdo, 17–34. Addis Ababa: Justice and Legal System Research Institute (JLSRI).
Hirko, S. B., 2016. “The Liquidation of Pecuniary Effects of Bigamous Marriage in Ethiopia: A Critical Review of the Precedents of the Federal Supreme court and Rule of Equity under the Oromia Regional Family Code.” International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family 30: 32–49.
Hoff, K., and J., Stiglitz. 1990. “Imperfect Information and Rural Credit Markets: Puzzles and Policy Perspectives.” World Bank Economic Review 4(3): 235–250.
Ibrahim, H. A., 2016. “Participation in Rotating Savings and Credit Associations and Enhanced Asset Accumulation among African Immigrants in the United States: An Institutional Approach.” PhD diss., Saint Louis University.
Irving, M., 2005. “South Africa: Investing in Social Capital.” CSSR Working Paper 112. University of Cape Town. http://www.cssr.uct.ac.za/index.html.
Katzin, M. F., 1960. “The Business of Higglering in Jamaica.” Social and Economic Studies 9(3): 297–331.
Kebede, Y., I., Ayele, M., Gebregziabher, and G., Gebrewahid. 2013. “Case Study on Seven Customary Laws in Ethiopia.” In Law and Development and Legal Pluralism in Ethiopia, edited by E. N., Stebek and M., Abdo, 195–226. Addis Ababa: Justice and Legal System Research Institute (JLSRI).
Kedir, A., and G., Ibrahim. 2011. “ROSCAs in Urban Ethiopia: Are the Characteristics of the Institutions More Important than those of Members?” Journal of Development Studies 47(7): 998–1016.
Klonner, S., 2006. “Risky Loans and the Emergence of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations.” Working Paper. D61, G21, O16.Cornell University.
Krzeczunowicz, G., 1965. “Code and Custom in Ethiopia.” Journal of Ethiopian Law 2(2): 425–439.
Krzeczunowicz, G., 1969. “The Present Role of Equity in Ethiopian Civil Law.” Journal of African Law 13: 145–157.
Le Polain, M., and M., Nyssens. 2013. “An Analysis of the Socio-Economic Logics Underpinning Formal and Informal Strategies for Coping with Economic Hardships in South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo.” In Securing Livelihoods: Informal Economy Practices and Institutions, edited by I., Hillenkamp, F., Lapeyre, and A., Lemaître, 78–98, Oxford university press. Oxford.
Levenson, A. R., and T., Besley. 1996. “The Anatomy of an Informal Financial Market: Rosca Participation in Taiwan.” Journal of Development Economics 51(1): 45–68.
Little, K., 1957. “The Role of Voluntary Associations in West African Urbanization.” American Anthropologist 59(4): 579–596.
Little, K., 1972. “Voluntary Associations and Social Mobility among West African Women.” Canadian Journal of African Studies 6(2): 275–288.
Low, A., 1995. A Bibliographical Survey of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations. Oxford: Oxfam.
Madestam, A., 2014. “Informal Finance: A Theory of Moneylenders.” Journal of Development Economics 107: 157–174.
Mancuso, S., 2014. “African Law in Action.” Journal of African Law 58(1): 1–21.
Mbizi, R., and E., Gwangwava. 2013. “Rotating Savings and Credit Associations: An Alternative Funding for Sustainable Micro Enterprise-Case of Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe.” Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa 15(7): 181–194.
Miracle, M., D., Miracle, and L., Cohen. 1980. “Informal Savings Mobilization in Africa.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 28(4): 701–724.
Pankhurst, A., and D., Haile Mariam. 2000. “The Iddir in Ethiopia: Historical Development, Social Function, and Potential Role in HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control.” Northeast Africa Studies 7(2): 35–57.
Pankhurst, R., and A., Eshete. 1958. “Self-Help in Ethiopia.” Ethiopia Observer 2(11): 354–364.
Ross, J., and Z., Berhe. 1974. “Legal Aspects of Doing Business in Addis Ababa: A Profile of Mercato Businessmen and Their Reception of New Laws.” African Law Studies 10(1): 1–46.
Rudic, C., 2016. Housing Finance Strategies of Informal Settlement Dwellers. Factors of Influence and Impacts of Planned Interventions in Dar es Salaam. Berlin: LIT.
Segers, K., S., Dessein, P., Develtere, S., Hagberg, G., Haylemariam, M., Haile, and J., Deckers. 2010. “The Role of Farmers and Informal Institutions in Microcredit Programs in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia.” Perspectives on Global Development and Technology 9(3–4): 520–544.
Shui Yan, T., 1995. “Informal Credit Markets and Economic Development in Taiwan.” World Development 23(5): 845–855.
Smets, P., 1998. “Money-Go-Rounds for Women: Finance as Instrument or as Ultimate Goal in Lottery Roscas.” Anthropos, 9 209–215.
Stebek, E. N, and M., Abdo, eds. 2013. Law and Development and Legal Pluralism in Ethiopia. Addis Ababa: Justice and Legal System Research Institute (JLSRI).
Steel, W., E., Aryeetey, H., Hettige, and M., Nissanke. 1997. “Informal Financial Markets under Liberalization in Four African Countries.” World Development 25(5): 817–830.
Tchuindjo, L., 2000. “La modélisation financière des tontines camerounaises.” African Review of Money Finance and Banking 47–96.
Thorp, R., 1990. “Review of Hernando De Soto, the Other Path: The Invisible Revolution in the Third World.” Journal of Latin American Studies 22: 403–405.
Totolo, E., 2013. “Exploring the Black-Box of Economic Informality: Social Networks and Institutional Change among Micro and Small Enterprises in Nairobi, Kenya.” In Securing Livelihoods: Informal Economy Practices and Institutions, edited by I., Hillenkamp, F., Lapeyre, and A., Lemaître, 167–190. Oxford, Oxford university press.
Tuori, K., 2010. “Legal Pluralism and Modernization: American Law Professors in Ethiopia and the Downfall of the Restatements of African Customary Law.” Journal of Legal Pluralism 62: 43–70.
Umuhire, P.-G., and M., Nyssens. 2013. “Informal and Formal Microfinance in Urban Sub-Saharan African Markets: The Case of Micro-Entrepreneurs in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.” In Securing Livelihoods: Informal Economy Practices and Institutions, edited by I., Hillenkamp, F., Lapeyre, and A., Lemaître, 147–166, Oxford University Press. Oxford.
Van den Brink, R., and J.-P., Chavas. 1997. “The Microeconomics of an Indigenous African Institution: The Rotating Savings and Credit Association.” Economic Development and Cultural Change 45(4): 745–772.
Vanderlinden, J., 1966. “Civil Law and Common Law Influences on the Developing Law of Ethiopia.” Buffalo Law Review 16: 250–266.
Vanderlinden, J., 1977. L’Éthiopie et ses populations. Brussels: Editions Complexe.
Vanderlinden, J., 2013. Les pluralismes juridiques. Brussels: Larcier.
Vanderlinden, J., 2015. “Postface.” The Journal of Legal Pluralism 47(1): 151–157.
Vanderlinden, J., forthcoming. “‘Here, There and Everywhere’… Or Nowhere? Some Comparative and Historical Afterthoughts about Custom as a Source of Law, or, From Custom to Non-Chirographic Law: An Unfinished Symphony of Imaginations with Pluralisms as a Continuo.
Warmington, W. A., 1958. “Saving and Indebtedness among Cameroons Plantation Workers.” Journal of the International African Institute 28(4): 329–343.
Yu, N. N., 2013. “On Designs of Rotating Savings and Credit Associations.” SSRN Working Papers. https://ssrn.com/abstract=2201436.