Pennies a Day - Full Video

Introduction

The introduction highlights the universal desire for people to improve their lives and the importance of having tools to help themselves.

People Striving for Better Lives

• People all over the world are striving to improve their lives.

• They seek opportunities to learn, prosper, earn a living, use their imaginations, take risks and reap rewards if they succeed.

• Ordinary people can achieve great things when given tools to help themselves.

The Ultimate Resource

This section emphasizes that people are the ultimate resource and introduces Bangladesh as an example of a country with a young population.

A Growing Population

• Every year, 132 million babies are born with potential to change the world.

• Young people have the potential to cure disease, reinvent the future or change world history.

• Bangladesh is an example of a country with a young population where half of its 140 million citizens are under twenty years old.

Bangladesh: A Country Haunted by Hunger

This section describes how Bangladesh struggled with hunger and poverty after gaining independence in 1971.

Early Struggles

• After gaining independence in 1971, more than seventy percent of Bangladeshi people lived on less than one dollar per day.

• Hunger and famine haunted almost every village and family in Bangladesh.

• Minara Begum and Dinislam Hussain were born into this world of poverty.

Muhammad Yunus' Idea for Grameen Bank

This section describes how Muhammad Yunus' idea for Grameen Bank began.

The Beginning of an Idea

• Minara and Dinislam were weavers who could never get ahead themselves despite working hard for others.

• Professor Yunus realized that villagers could only buy supplies to create small businesses with high-interest loans from unscrupulous money lenders.

• In one village, he provided life-changing loans to forty-two people that cost a total of twenty-seven dollars.

Grameen Bank: A Bank for the Rural Poor

This section introduces Grameen Bank as a bank for the rural poor and explains what microcredit is.

Microcredit

• The Grameen Bank provides "microcredit," which are small loans to poor people enabling them to create their own businesses.

• More than two-thirds of the world's population are rejected by the financial system, but microcredit provides an option for those in poverty.

Conclusion

The conclusion emphasizes the importance of empowering ordinary people and providing tools to help themselves.

Empowering Ordinary People

• Providing tools to help ordinary people can lead to great achievements.

• People all over the world have similar desires and needs, regardless of where they live or their circumstances.

Women's Empowerment through Microfinance

This section discusses how microfinance has empowered women in Bangladesh to become financially independent and improve their lives.

Loans for Women

• Initially, religion interpreted that "women should stay home" which made husbands the first opponent of loans given to women.

• Over time, things changed and women became more cautious with their money. They started earning income and used it to benefit their children and build towards a better future.

• The Grameen Bank provides initial loans for income-producing projects so there will be money for repayment. Loans are made for livestock, poultry, agriculture, grocery shops, and even cell phones.

Social Benefits of Microfinance

• Each week, Grameen borrowers gather in a "Center Meeting" to pay installments directly to a regional Grameen banker and discuss common problems. This brings people together and is an opportunity for them to get to know their neighbors.

• There are now over 250,000 "Grameen phone ladies" throughout Bangladesh who provide phones for the village; selling minutes that enable millions to talk with loved ones across the country and around the world.

• As part of the loan process, borrowers throughout Bangladesh have developed crucial elements for living successful, healthy lives. They recite them at every Center Meeting. These include cleanliness, balanced meals, family planning, and working hard.

Impact on Women's Lives

• Loans are an excuse really; they work around that loan and discover themselves which brings out their creativity.

• A second loan helped Minara and Dinislam improve their home. It now has a tin roof to keep out the monsoon rains, a separate room for the loom, and a well that provides clean water.

• Women having access to finance changes everything; the power of money. In our last count, we see that 56% of families within Grameen Bank have moved out of poverty.

Conclusion

• Microfinance has empowered women in Bangladesh to become financially independent and make decisions for themselves. The future of Bangladesh is bright, and it is hoped that soon it will be able to become a poverty-free country which will inspire the whole world to become a poverty-free world.

• The power of a simple idea has changed lives in Bangladesh, and "microcredit" has become a global phenomenon.