Expanding Dr. Yunus' Sphere of Influence

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
Queens needs microfinance as much as South Asia

Financial Times

Published: Feb 26, 2008

From Ms Anne Fish.

Sir, The news of Grameen Bank’s entry into the US market (“Bangladeshi’s aid for US poor”, February 16) is indeed welcome. The need for microfinance in Queens and the other boroughs of New York is every bit as real as it is in Bangladesh.

With its stature and Nobel Peace Prize (through its founder Muhammad Yunus), Grameen brings much-needed visibility to the microfinance industry in the US. While the domestic microfinance industry has gone largely unnoticed against the backdrop of international microfinance, it plays a vital role in providing financing to those on the economic margin who have not been able to secure traditional forms of finance for their businesses.

Grameen joins dozens of other microlenders in the US, including the US ACCION network which has lent over $210m since its inception in one of the other boroughs of New York, Brooklyn, in 1991.

We welcome this microfinance pioneer to the US and look forward to their help in extending access to capital to economically disenfranchised individuals and communities throughout the country.

Anne Fish,

Vice President, Resource Development,

ACCION USA,

Boston, MA 02129, US

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