29 February 2012

One of the most celebrated names in global development will visit Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) in March to launch the penultimate stage in bringing his unique brand of microfinance to the UK by setting up Europe’s first Grameen Bank branch.

Indications are that more than half - about 2.5bn adults - of the world’s working-age population does not have quality, affordable financial service - the majority living in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East (1). But on our doorstep, statistics suggest more than 1m adults live in unbanked households in the UK (2) for which the Grameen Bank offers a proven solution. 

Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus was recognised in 2006 for the huge progress the Bank has made in alleviating global poverty since beginning in 1976. The Grameen Bank has become a world movement dedicated to eradicating poverty through micro-lending. Replicas of the model now operate in more than 100 countries worldwide.

On March 7 Professor Yunus will offer staff and students at the University a master class in social business. GCU is one of the only Universities in the UK to offer a MSc, PgD and PgC in Social Enterprise

The Grameen method of microfinance, or microcredit, includes the provision of unsecured loans for social business development, alongside community-orientated financial advice.  

GCU is facilitating the creation of the bank, having set up the Yunus Centre for Social Business and Health at the University in 2010.  Through the Centre and with international collaborators, GCU aims to transform the lives of the poorest through pioneering research, examining the impact of microcredit on the health and wellbeing of communities in Scotland and overseas.

Principal and Vice Chancellor Professor Pamela Gillies said: “Though excellent microcredit and corporate banking is available in Scotland, it has not been able to break through deep rooted economic inequalities.  The success of the Grameen Bank in other parts of the world, including the USA, demonstrates that its community-centred approach can make a serious contribution to improving the life expectancy of people from the most impoverished sectors of society.”

Source: Glasgow Caledonian University