He was born on June 28, 1940 at the seaport city of Chittagong, Bangladesh. At an early age, his father encouraged him to higher education.
Therefore, after graduating from Dhaka University, Bangladesh, he acquired a Fulbright scholarship to study Economics at Vanderbilt University in the United States of America. He received his PhD in 1971.
However, he did not return to Bangladesh until its independence in 1972. He returned to serve as the Head of Economics Department at the University of Chittagong.
In 1976, he visited the a village and saw village basket weavers living in real poverty. He was an ambassador of a world without poverty.
He was very unhappy that they had the skills, worked very hand yet they were not able to overcome the poverty levels within them.
This inspired him to help them. Therefore, in 1983, he opened the Grameen (Village) bank which became a microcredit bank at the entry-level. The microfinance operated a a subsistence entrepreneurs.
By June 2020, Grameen Bank had given $30.48 billion dollars worth of loans to some of the world most poor people.
Yunus was an Economist who earned recognition because of pioneering the empowerment on the poor communities. He was a professor and a Nobel Laureate who became an internationally renowned for his revolutionary system of micro-credit.
Moreover, this became the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs who were too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. This helped millions of entrepreneurs escape poverty.
He visited the village in Bangladesh and felt the need to change the lives of the poor by empowering them financially. He used his knowledge about the economy to impact communities in the world by providing finances to small entrepreneurs.
2. Founder, Grameen Bank
Photo by Wikimedia Commons – Wikimedia
The inspiration to start a micro-credit bank to help the poor entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. The micro-credit began in 1983.
The bank was only to assist the poor entrepreneurs who could not access bank loans build their business.
From its origins as an action-research project in 1976, Grameen Bank has grown to provide collateral-free loans to 7.5 million clients in more than 82,072 villages in Bangladesh and 97% of whom are women.
This is an organization of its kind. Special to the poor in the world. Professor Yunus’ main agenda was to turn the world into a place where human beings have an equal right to basic needs. Hence, he founded Grameen Foundation to reach out to the poor globally.
The contribution he made to the communities by introducing a loan facility to help improve livelihoods could not have gone unnoticed.
In 2006, he received the Nobel Peace Prize. Professor Muhammad Yunus was internationally recognized for his work in poverty alleviation and the empowerment of poor women.
During the awarding ceremony, Professor Yunus traveled to Oslo along nine women from the poor communities of Bangladesh who witnessed the great achievement.
5. Vision Carrier for Social Responsibility
By proving free loans to the poor in the communities particularly women, he has qualified to be a world Social Responsibility ambassador.
Over the last two decades, Grameen Bank has loaned out over 6.5 billion dollars to the poorest of the poor, while maintaining a repayment rate consistently above 98%.
The innovative approach to poverty alleviation pioneered by Professor Yunus in a small village in Bangladesh has inspired a global microcredit movement reaching out to millions of poor women from rural South Africa to inner city Chicago.
6. Melded Capitalism
Professor Yunus has successfully melded capitalism with social responsibility to create the Grameen Bank, a microcredit institution committed to providing small amounts of working capital to the poor for self-employment.
This has changed the poor communities in Bangladesh.
7. His philosophy “Banker to the Poor”
His vision to the world free of poverty otherwise referred by his quote “Banker to the Poor” has changed the lives of millions.
Microlending and the Battle Against World Poverty,” has been translated in French, Italian, Spanish, English, Japanese, Portuguese, Dutch, Gujarati, Chinese, German, Turkish and Arabic.
8. A Global Ambassador
His Foundation has spread within a few decades to reach out many poor communities. The foundation has offices in five different countries, India, Philippines, Uganda, Kenya and Ghana.
In all these countries, many families have been transformed.
9. An Intelligent Innovation
Over the last two decades, Grameen Bank has loaned out over 6.5 billion dollars to the poorest of the poor, while maintaining a repayment rate consistently above 98%.
10. Pioneer of Social Business
Professor Yunus has a powerful quote about social business which says “A charity dollar has only one life. A social business dollar has endless life.”
He said this quote as he formed a financial sustainability organization known as Social Business (SB). This was for social benefit rather than private benefit.
Social Business has an environmental mission, but like a business, it generates its own revenues to cover its costs.
It focuses on Investors recouping their investment. All profits are reinvested for growth and innovation, or to seed new Social Business ventures.
The major aim in Social Business is to expand the current capitalist model by focusing on goals that serve society at large rather than personal profit.
Financial sustainability is only a constraint to reach the social aim rather than an end in itself. Since Social Businesses need to compete in the free market to provide their goods or services, they are inherently efficient in serving their social goal
That is what a great man of people, Prof. Muhammad Yunus believed in. The most important thing is that he achieved his goal, impacted many people particularly the poor in the society.
The innovative approach to poverty eradication is one that no one else in the world has taken into heart. He is therefore, referred to as a hero in the fight against poverty.
Unfortunately, this great man of people was assassinated on December 24, 2004 by the Islamist terrorist organization Jamatul Mujahideen Bangladesh among four other professors at the Rajshahi University.
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Charity enjoys exploring the world of religion. She enjoys reading about the history of Biblical events as well as special landmarks. Charity K. uses her background in historic events to write about important events in the world. Her passion for religious themes can be noted in her articles. As a communicator for Development, she draws inspiration from the great fathers of communication and history. When Charity is not writing, she lectures in the field of communication and disseminates information for community impact.
Charity enjoys exploring the world of religion. She enjoys reading about the history of Biblical events as well as special landmarks. Charity K. uses her background in historic events to write about important events in the world. Her passion for religious themes can be noted in her articles. As a communicator for Development, she draws inspiration from the great fathers of communication and history. When Charity is not writing, she lectures in the field of communication and disseminates information for community impact.
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