21 April 2008
Gordon Brown has met with Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, father of microfinance and founder of the Grameen Bank.
The Prime Minister announced that the UK Government will work with the Grameen Group, and other partners to give access to and unlock the power of financial services for Africa’s poor.
The Grameen (or ‘village’) Bank, which gives small loans to families and businesses, has shown how effective microfinance can be in bringing about economic and social development, with millions of people lifted out of poverty in villages across Bangladesh and beyond.
The Prime Minister and Professor Yunus discussed how the public and private sectors can work together to help unlock the power of microfinance to improve the lives of millions, particularly in Africa, where the world’s development emergency hits hardest and nearly 300 million people still live on less that $1 a day.
The Prime Minister said:
"With foreign investment into microfinance across the globe tripling to $4 billion between 2004 and 2006, and through the work of organisations like the Grameen Trust which reaches over 4.7 million families through 141 partners in 38 countries, the impact of microfinance is being felt all over the world. There is an urgent need to improve business and management skills in the microfinance industry in Africa to make sure this money is used to help people from the world’s poorest communities."
"As a first step the UK Government will provide £500,000, towards bridging the skills gap in the microfinance industry in Africa, which will be more than matched by the private sector. We will bring together civil society organisations, and the private sector to contribute the funding, knowledge and skills required to bring microfinance to those who need it most."