Sustainable microfinance as a transforming knowledge domain A bibliometric and systematic review

Abstract

Sustainable microfinance has evolved from an instrument to alleviate poverty into a multidimensional development tool that integrates financial inclusion, social outcomes, and environmental sustainability. However, the research in this field is fragmented across microfinance, green finance, and sustainable finance, and it unclear how these dimensions interact. We address this gap by conducting the first integrated bibliometric and systematic review of sustainable microfinance, based on articles published between 1999 and 2025 (identified in Web of Science and Scopus). We use a mixed-methods design that combines bibliometric mapping with qualitative synthesis to reconstruct the conceptual evolution of the field and identify its intellectual and thematic structure. The results reveal three stages: an initial welfarist phase focused on poverty reduction and women’s empowerment; an institutionalist phase emphasising financial self-sufficiency and operational efficiency; and a recent sustainability-oriented phase that incorporates environmental responsibility, governance quality, and digital transformation. The emerging themes include climate-risk management, renewable energy financing, environmental performance of microfinance institutions, impacts based on gender, knowledge-based financial inclusion, and the role of institutional capacity in shaping development outcomes. From a development perspective, sustainable microfinance intersects with climate vulnerability, persistent inequalities, digital divides, and governance challenges. Nevertheless, there are important gaps regarding theoretical integration, cross-country comparability, how environmental and social outcomes are measured, and the long-term effectiveness of green and gender-oriented interventions. Overall, sustainable microfinance is a promising but under-theorised domain with substantial potential to support inclusive, climate-resilient, and gender-responsive development pathways. We propose a future research agenda grounded in multidimensional and context-sensitive approaches.