November 2004

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Grameen Bank Founder to Speak at College

Professor Muhammad Yunus, founder and Director of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, will speak on Tuesday, November 16, at 8 p.m., in Room 260 of the College Union Building at Gettysburg College. His topic is “Grameen Bank, Micro-Credit, and the Challenge to Ending Global Poverty.” A brief reception will follow the question and answer period.

“Grameen” means “rural.” The bank originated in the 1970s, when Dr. Yunus developed a project to extend credit to the many poor men and women in Bangladesh. Its clientele now extends to more than two million households. It extends credit without collateral, and instead relies on a system of mutual trust, strict supervision, accountability, participation, and creativity. With sufficient financial resources, says Dr. Yunus, “These millions of small people with their millions of small pursuits can add up to create the biggest development wonder.” More information is available at http://www.unesco.org/education/poverty/grameen.shtml, from which this information has been drawn.

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Last updated March 6, 2005

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