Microenterprise and the Poor: Findings from the Self-Employment Learning Project Five Year Survey of Microentrepreneurs

The Self-Employment Learning Project of the Aspen Institute tracked the progress of 405 individuals who were running microbusinesses for a five-year period from 1991 to 1997. Of these individuals, 133 were very poor — with households less than 150 percent of the poverty line — at the first year of the study. This report documents the experiences of these individuals in their efforts to get out of poverty and the progress of the businesses they operate.