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Helping The Less Fortunate Help Themselves
All of the talk these days surrounds the economy, things seem bleak but I assure you we who live in 1st world nations have it pretty darn easy. It is said that 95% of the world's wealth is controlled by 40% of the global population. That means 60% fight over the remaining 5%, doesn'y seem very fair does it? If you are like me living in North American you need to remind yourself every now and again that you have basically won the lottery just by being born.
Yes there are many people even in 1st world nations that struggle to make ends meet. Health care is something almost 15% of all Americans can't afford and with more and more people losing their jobs every day things are getting worse for this 40%. The big difference between the poor living in say the USA and those living in Asia is that there is always an opportunity to turn things around. We regularly hear about rags to riches stories in the USA but this just isn't possible for many living in Asia.
There are however some organizations trying to change this. There is a world renowned Economics professor whom started a small bank in his native Bangladesh. While teaching during the 80's in Bangladesh he noticed just how bad famine was ripping through his country and wanted to try and do something about it. With his background he realized a band aid solution wasn't going to work; these people needed real tangible life changing ideas to impact their lives for today and tomorrow.
The bank is setup as a business first and foremost but runs itself as a cooperative of sorts. No dividends are ever issued and all of the money made goes back into the organization. So what do they do? The gentleman realized that his fellow Bangladesh's needed money to pay off debt and small loans to start small business'. In much of the third world families can be stricken with debt that in most cases doesn't exceed $20-$30. This can take years to pay off as many make less than a dollar a day. Giving these people money to pay off a loan and additional funds that usually don't exceed $50 to start a new business is life changing!
Many of these new businesses revolve around agriculture; $35 to buy some chickens to start a small chicken business, or to buy seeds and tools to tend a small garden. These tiny investments are enough money for these families to live a comfortable life and become completely self reliant. The interesting part about this program is the money is a loan, with zero interest but it is expected to be paid back.
The founder insists on only lending to women because through his research he has noted women are better with money. Funny he hasn't been around the women I know! While many women in the western world can be known for their shopping sprees under tight financial conditions women are better at getting by with very little compared to men; now that makes sense me. The loans as mentioned are only given to women and over the past 10 years that this program has been running they have a 99.6% repayment rate. Amazing isn't it!
The bank does use outside funds to grow this business, but as funds are repaid they are immediately put back into the business. What a brilliant business/charity!
My point in talking about this program is not only to enlighten you about this amazing man and his organization. It is also to remind you how good most of us have it and while things are tight we all need to be reminded that our fortune should be shared. Whether you decide to invest in the bank or a local charity, the point is that you need to give or continue giving!
About the Author This article was written by Shawn Wilson, a member of the customer support team at Datepad, where internet dating is always free. Datepad has a massive directory of informative dating articles along with a great list of dating site reviews on their dating blog.
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