The Sustainable Future

Microfinance case studies

Want to get a better picture of what microfinance is all about? Want to see it from a where-the-rubber-hits-the-road perspective. Check out Michael Standaert's list of links to microfinance case studies over on Audeamus.

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A contrarian view of microcredit lending

I love the idea that business can change the world for the better. Social entepreneurship, socially responsible investing, microcredit lending - they all bring a smile to my face.

I also know that it's easy to mistake hype for reality. That's especially true when we really want to believe it.

With that in mind, I always like to find contrary views to popular opinion. Take microcredit lending, for example. To me, it just makes sense, and it seems like it should have an enormous potential to make a positive difference in fighting poverty.

Here's an article though, that takes a contrarian view on microcredit. While I don't share the author's negative view of microcredit, I do think the article raises a lot of great questions about how effective microcredit really is and what it can and can't do.

The risk with something like microcredit is that people start to see it as a panacea. The PR takes on a life of its own. In reality, it is a solution with both possibilities and limitations.

If you're interested in microcredit as a tool for alleviating poverty, read this article. Not because all the issues the author outlines are "right," and you need to see how you're being bamboozled, but because it gives you a better opportunity to consider the full picture. It raises questions you might never have known existed.

Read it. Take what makes sense to you. Refute what doesn't. Ultimately, you'll have a deeper (and more accurate) picture of the pitfalls and possibilities involved.

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