Microcredit & Grameen Banking Stock Photographs

Microcredit has been revitalizing communities in the developing world for many years, and 2005 was designated the UN Year of Microcredit. Thanks to small loans, often as little as $50 or $100, people who have been struggling economically, and would be deemed uncreditworthy by the conventional banks, have been able to set up small businesses and prosper.

There are different definitions of microcredit, but the system known as Grameen Banking, which started in Bangladesh, has become the most well known. With a mission to help poor families help themselves in overcoming poverty, it makes credit a basic human right. Borrowers form "savings clubs" which regularly meet, each member bringing a savings book with them, and contributing a sum each month, no matter how small. Trust is built up, and after a while individual members are able to borrow, and get their small businesses started. In our collection, we have pictures illustrating this process in several countries in the developing world.

- Sean Sprague, Photographer

More Information Related to Microcredit:

• Grameen-Info.org
• YearOfMicrocredit.org
• Grameen Foundation
• Microcredit Enterprises
• Kiva.org
• Wikipedia about Microcredit