Microfinance, But Only For Some?
I felt inspired yesterday by reading a blog about university students trying to make microfinance accessible to refugees in their community. Professor Jude Fernando’s microfinance students are applying principles learned in the classroom to serve the need that is being expressed in their community. As Professor Fernando said in the article
Worcester is a microcosm of the world, We don’t have to fly 1,000 miles away looking for the Third World. There is one right across the street.
Refugees like Oulimate have proven to be successful small business owners in the United States
I nodded as I thought, yes, indeed. Microfinance is a great tool for displaced refugees trying to build a new life in the United States. In fact it is said that the majority of microentrepreneurs in the U.S. are first and second generation immigrants.
You can imagine that a refugee from Burma, who doesn’t speak English, will find most success creating and selling their native handicrafts, since it’s unlikely that big-box employers like Walmart would hire them. As I read Priyanka Dayal’s article, I was mentally praising the students at Clark University for the important cause they are supporting.
Then I scrolled down to read my favorite part of web based journalism, the comments—here, both encouraging and discouraging. Some disagreed entirely with the work of the professor and his students at Clark, arguing that refugees are undeserving of microcredit because there are other “local” business owners who ought to be first in line. Or the comment that basically refugees don’t know the rules here, so they should be able to play the game, so to speak.
Indeed there are barriers to entry in the United States that are much greater than in developing countries, that why most microfinance institution offer financial education and technical assistance resources to assist entrepreneurs in meeting these requirements. It’s in our interest to see that micro entrepreneurs formalize there businesses and learn the rules. And most importantly we believe that all individuals no matter their country of origin, or road to entreprenuership are equally deserving of credit– capital that is needed to support a healthy family and a healthy community.
Read the excellent article written by Priyanka Dayal, and chime into the comments. I’ll add this one…
But far be it for me to point out the obvious. Okay fine… I will! It is integration of all aspects of our society that creates prosperity. Giving refugees a pragmatic tool like microcredit to empower their success, is a success that we all share. After all there are many who consider microcredit a human right.
February 10th, 2010 at 6:45 pm
Micro lending is about “lending responsible.” If you are a business owner who needs $50k but cannot afford it; then, you and your the biz get only what it can afford. I love every component of it.