Microcredit

Microcredit can be defined as small loans, or microloans, for people around the world in extreme poverty to help spur entrepreneurship. The issue of microcredit is extremely important in the world’s economy. Poverty alleviation and economic development are the primary goals of microcredit programs, that is why they began in the developing countries of Asia and Latin America, economist Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank in Bangladesh are credited of pioneering this financial innovation (Smith, Thurman, 2007). After acquiring a loan, impoverished people get involved in self-employment projects that help them to start a business and begin generating income and in many cases leave poverty. Microcredit offers loans to poor people without requesting any financial history from them. These loans help to improve the quality of life of individuals and communities through commitment. In recent years, the idea of giving small loans to poor people became the darling of the development world, giving a way to propel even the poorest people into better lives (Jolis, 2011).

Since its emergence, microcredit has been viewed as a very important tool for development. Many around the world believe microcredit is the antidote for global poverty. Although the Grameen Bank focuses only on people from Bangladesh, different microfinance institutions had been established around the world. Accion International is one example of these institutions in Latin America, which started providing loans in 1973 (The history of microfinance, 2005). These financial institutions started to grow rapidly due to high demands of small loans. Poor people around the world started to lose faith to their countries’ authorities to provide for their well being and started to tur...

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...e of the challenges that the Grameen Bank has faced in the last years is that the government believed that citizens from Bangladesh are just growing a big dept that will only damage their lives in the future. However, as stated before, 98% of the loans have been repaid.

Overall, microcredit has helped millions of people around the world and it continues to have a great impact on poor people, informing them that all they need is a little ‘push’ or start-up money to begin creating a better life and subsequently a better community. Each organization has its own goals and purposes depending on the country where they reside as well as different challenges that have appeared. Microcredit is helping poor people and small business owners to better themselves as well as to their families and have their time, skills, and ideas utilized in an effective and positive way.