a bank for the disadvantaged or ‘mass market’. But despite all the ‘talk’ of financial inclusion I found little support from my fellow bankers and the regulators, who continue to disappoint. I was forced to look elsewhere and at different leaders and models: Ela Bhatt, Sewa Bank; Vijay Mahajan, BASIX; and the iconic Professor Yunus, Grameen Bank. I spent two weeks with Grameen Bank and met Professor Yunus for the first time in 2003. An unpretentious professor, he expressed his concerns that despite being neighbours (India & Bangladesh) and the vast numbers of the un-served in India, there was not much progress in microfinance. His only guidance was: Go and do whatever you can to remove this perverse gap.

Since then there have been dramatic developments in the microfinance sector in India, both good and bad. India recorded one of the fastest growths in terms of outreach in the world and along with it came some of the noxious side effects of commercialization and greed. Those who could not stick to the narrow path and fell for the lure of the proverbial silver coins included a number of Professor Yunus’s early ‘disciples’ in India. Perhaps that is why he feels so bitter and makes sweeping statements against all those who embraced commercial microfinance under the NBFC (Non Banking Financial Company) route. I would like to reassure him that there is still a vast army of his followers, who continue to march to the original tune of our mission of serving the poor.

Professor Yunus is human and not perfect. He could have done better in terms of Grameen Bank’s succession planning and not burdened himself as a Managing Director at his age and with his global responsibilities. He always told us that microfinance and politics did not mix. However we understood his extreme frustration which led him to announce entry to the political arena after the last martial law in Bangladesh, a decision he soon regretted, and quickly retracted. Perhaps that was a frightening move for the political leaders, who feel insecure with the influence the major leaders of microfinance have over the poor in Bangladesh.

It is amazing to see the incredible progress made in alleviating poverty in Bangladesh over the last 30 years and in large part contributed by the microfinance sector. One needs to only check various social development indices including child mortality, population growth rate etc. to understand the difference made by him. Drive through the verdant rural countryside; talk to rural women in Bangladesh and one can appreciate how their lives have changed for the better.

Grameen operates a vast range of activities that have provided inclusion to Bangladesh’s poor : banking, mobile telephones, healthcare, shoes, yogurt, fisheries, textiles, solar power etc. Everything it touches virtually turns to gold. This is quite a contrast to the ineffective, corruption-ridden government enterprises and programs. Grameen Bank’s model of microfinance has spread all over the world. One sure way to destroy Grameen Bank and its various enterprises is to hand it over to the Government. They will return Bangladesh to the past when it was considered the ‘basket case’ of the world: the poorest of the poor countries.

Our request to the Bangladesh Government: Please give Grameen Bank time to choose the right successor to Profess Yunus. Honour this great man, this Nobel Laureate who has brought honour to your country and provided hope to the poorest citizens. Do not destroy the inheritance that he has so painstakingly built up for them over these past decades.

Samit Ghosh
11th April