The Impact of Omo Micro Finance Credit on Smallholder Farmers' Income : The case of north bench district in bench Maji zone,SW-Ethiopia

This study was initiated to assess the impact of OMFC on smallholder farmers' income. Primary data were collected from purposively selected three PAs. 36 OMFC user's households, 12 from each PAs, were included in the final analysis. Secondary data were collected from relevant organizations and related documents. Descriptive statistics were used for analyzing the data. Moreover, likert scale method was used to measure the attitude of farmers' towards the OMFC on their livelihood. The research revealed that contact to DAs, training about system of credit and visiting frequency of OMFCSI's coordinator were significant for farmers' to get more income in CUY. Distance of OMFCSI's from farmers' residence was found to have a negative impact on farmers' farm income. The general scale label of attitude was found to be 2, implying that the farmers have a strong positive attitude towards the impact of credit to their livelihood. Therefore, considering of factors affecting credit use, impact of credit on farm income and livelihood of the farmer are vital in providing information to undertake effective measures with the aim of extending loans and increasing access to credit.