Social Business: Prof. Yunus' Economic Revolution-Janice Manlutac

This year we celebrate a lot of things… 15th year since the dismantling of apartheid 20th anniversary of the collapsed of the Berlin Wall 23rd year since the EDSA People Power Revolution in my country, the Philippines 40th year since man first landed on the moon 82nd year since the abolition of slavery in Sierra Leone The 91st birthday of Nelson Mandela These victories were considered impossible until someone or a group of people decided to make them possible. “Twenty years from now, poverty should only exist in museums. We will have to take our children there when they want to know how it was to be poor. By then poverty has ceased to exist in their lifetime. This is the next impossible thing we need to tackle. ” This was the inspiring and moving message given by 7th Nelson Mandela Lecture Series speaker, Prof. Muhhamad Yanus at the Johannesburg City Hall this Saturday, July 11, 2009. The Nobel Peace Prize winner and Ramon Magsaysay Awardee shared his journey with Grameen Bank, now the most successful bank specializing in micro lending to marginalized communities in the world. “Poverty is not in the person. A poor person is as capable as anyone else. Poor people are poor because we have institutions that make them poor,” he said to a crowd gathered to celebrate former South African President Nelson Mandela’s 91st birthday. Prof. Yunus shared his unshakeable belief that the poor can help themselves escape poverty if given a chance. He talked of conventional banks that will never lend a loan to a poor person because he or she does not have collateral. The Bangladeshi banker who pioneered a micro-financing system for the poor, said the financial meltdown has shown that traditional ways of doing business have not worked. "This economic crisis suddenly awakens us to the fact that this system is not working. When the system is not working that is the best time to undo it and redo it in a new way," he said. A big part of his speech talked on how the world does business and how a business based on paper is susceptible to collapse. “The world is in a business to make profit. This has always been how we do business. It appeals to the selfish person in each of us. We are here to make money, money and more money. And it treats a human being as a one dimensional being. “ He added, “There is a selfless part to every person. Why can’t we appeal to that? And investing in social business does not mean you have to donate what you have. The same economic principles apply except you are not there to make profit for yourself. “ He said social businesses exemplified by Grameen Bank and the other companies he has created can be used to bring health care to the sick, safe drinking water to villages and nutrition to poor children. "Whenever I see a problem, I immediately go and create a company," he said, to a pleased crowd. "The financial crisis on top of the food crisis, the energy crisis, the environment crisis, the social crisis — all these are combined. Isn't it time to wake up and redo things?" Now is the time for an economic revolution, the creation a new economic order based on Social business. He emphasized that ordinary citizens are no less capable of creating opportunities for one another. “This is an era where we should not rely on the government for job creation. “ The Nobel Laureate spoke of how the world uses charity to alleviate its guilt. “Charity is not a solution to poverty. Charity freezes poverty temporarily or even makes it worst. We should not subscribe to charity. What we need is to create opportunities for creativity. For the unemployed to find ways to make their contribution to the world economy.“ Prof. Yunus’ lecture was peppered with funny but touching anecdotes. He shared a story of how scholars of Grameen Bank which today totals 30 000, would come up to him worrying about employment in this global economic recession. “I tell them that you shall never seek job in your life. Your mission is to create jobs. You are not a job seeker. Be a job creator. You should at the very least provide job for 5 unemployed people. And not to worry, your mothers own a bank!” Ninety Five percent of borrowers and shareholders of Grameen Bank are women and loan repayment is almost 100 percent . The Grameen CEO said that early on his team realized that financial credit to a woman will go towards bringing more benefits to the whole family and community compared to giving it to a man. This visionary’s solution to world poverty is simple. It is founded on the belief that credit is a fundamental human right. Lend poor people money on terms that are suitable to them, teach them a few sound financial principles and they will help themselves. Today Grameen Bank has totalled a loan of $ 6 billion to 7 million families in rural Bangladesh. More than 250 institutions in nearly 100 countries operate micro-credit programs based on Grameen methodology. This has placed Grameen at the forefront of a burgeoning world movement toward eradicating poverty through micro-lending. “Let’s tackle the next impossible thing—Poverty,” was his concluding words. Prof. Yunus bowed out to a standing ovation from the audience and to a smiling Nelson Mandela.