The microfinance institutions work with women in the rural and even in the urban areas who have the skills of sewing, embroidery, pot painting and other ideas, which they use to build their business and microfinance has definitely helped them greatly. Thousands of small businesses came into existence and started earning regular income, which did not only reduce their poverty but improved their living standards, good food, and basic clothing for their survival.
There is a misconception that poor wants to remain a poor, the thing, which causes many people to shrink away from helping them. Microfinance has wronged the belief to a considerable level, they need an opportunity to use creative ideas to work their way up the poverty line. The third world countries, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tunisia, Sri Lanka and a lot more developing countries have benefitted from microfinance in alleviating poverty. Microfinance has not only provided opportunity for better living but also enabled these people to arrange for their kids’ education, better living environment, transportation and a healthy life.
There are thousands of examples available who have availed loan from NGOs and MFIs and now having business at international level. MFIs and NGOs like Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC), ASA International, IFC, Kashf Foundation Pakistan, Bandhan India, Grameen Bank Bangladesh, Fundación Mundial de la Mujer Bucaramanga, Brazil, Amhara Credit and Savings Institution Ethopia and a lot more are working for improvement.
The NGOs, with the help of MFIs, provides trainings so that people know about investment, management of their budget and expenses while investing in their own business. Some of the institutions are providing trainings to enhance skills, guidance on how to improve their social and economic aspects, how to save money to repay their loans on time and how to invest more in their businesses.
This means that there are multiple risks and challenges involved for entrepreneurs to provide the best quality product at reasonable prices. Previously, the aim of microfinance was to empower the poor, but now the motto of financial inclusion is to empower businesses or entrepreneurs so that they can provide better product to serve poor and other social classes. To cater the basic needs of poor, entrepreneurs or businesses have to come up with better products that are available at low cost and are fulfilling the basic needs and wants of deprived.
A new direction has been given to microfinance and empowerment of entrepreneurs and businesses. We hope for the best that this new concept of financial inclusion will help in empowering poor people to get food, education and also improve socio-economic factors of life.
