Weekly Roundup

This week's roundup delves into the significant growth of microfinance, and a new way to look at progress in the fight against poverty. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Grameen America Board Chair Muhammad Yunus discusses how to take philanthropy to the next level alongside Sir Richard Branson and Bill Gates.

• The International Finance Corporation (IFC) estimates that microfinance has reached some 130 million people worldwide in the last 15 years. This growth is expected to continue in years to come. Even so, there is progress to be made: the World Bank estimates that some 2.5 billion adults still lack access to financial services. Read the article here.

• A recent article in the The New Yorker explains that when measured properly, the poverty rate has fallen dramatically since the mid-1960's. According to a new study by a group of economists at Columbia University, it has dropped by forty percent.

• At the 7th Philanthropic Roundtable in Davos, Grameen America Board Chair Muhammad Yunus explained that there is a need to bring human identity back to the business, defining it as something that “will not do harm to people, will not do harm to planet, will not exploit people, will not have corruption, no deception.” Watch the video here:

Grameen America Board Chair Professor Yunus speaks at Davos Philanthropic Roundtable