President and CEO Rupert Scofield visits a FINCA Afghanistan Village Bank Group in Kabul. Photo credit: FINCA staff.

ONE members are among the most committed and energetic advocates on the front lines of the fight against global poverty that I’ve seen in my 40 years. You read the ONE Blog, you write your friends, you visit your elected officials, you sign petitions, you raise your voices -– all because you believe in social justice and you want a future where every child has a chance to break the chains of poverty and disease. I feel the same way, and in a world where there is less and less focus on the challenges facing the world’s poorest people, I urge you to ask yourself a question: What if I took the next step and became a social entrepreneur, applying my energy to start a new business, organization, or campaign to bring about the change I wish to see in the world?

This is a daunting question, and I can assure you there is no easy answer to it. But after nearly four decades of making small business “microloans” to women in the world’s poorest communities with my organization, FINCA International, I have developed a view as to what are the most important ingredients for success in social entrepreneurship.

Here are five lessons for entrepreneurs who are thinking of taking the plunge into social action:

1. Follow your passion. Starting FINCA took a lot of hard work, but it was such a labor of love that I never viewed it as a job. We were on a mission, and our passion and enthusiasm attracted many talented people willing to share their skills and experience. People, especially recent graduates, often ask me: “Where do I begin?” I answer with a question of my own: “What or whom do you care about? Global warming? World hunger? Righting a wrong?”

2. Be a volunteer. If you are not quite sure where to begin, volunteer for a non-profit either in the US or abroad. You will quickly discover whether or not this work is for you, if you’ve picked the right cause, and if you are ready to take the next step toward starting or joining a social enterprise. As a ONE advocate, you are actively working to promote social justice and end global poverty. In other words, you’ve already taken the first step.

3. Walk a mile in their shoes. Social entrepreneurs feel passionate about something, usually correcting an injustice or helping a group of people who are getting a raw deal and are powerless to do much or anything about it. But social entrepreneurs shouldn’t just read about their constituency, they need to “walk a mile in their shoes” in order to develop an understanding of their plight. If you can find an opportunity to get out into “the field” and live in the communities you are trying to help.

4. Build it brick by brick. To operate a successful socially minded organization, you must start as you would with any other business: you need to hone your skills and acquire the necessary experience. You will need to recruit other true believers to your cause. You will need to raise the capital to finance your social business, to make payroll, and to provide the goods and services to the constituency you have identified. How do you accomplish this? Brick by brick. There are no short cuts that I have found, making patience, diligence and creativity the keys to success.

5. Never stop innovating. The future of social entrepreneurship is limited only by our imaginations and creativity. In many ways, all socially-responsible businesses are moving in this direction. Their employees and shareholders are demanding they be accountable for more than just dragging money to the bottom line — making new approaches to problems a must. We are in continual dialogue with our clients to identify the new products and services that they most need to build stable, more secure livelihoods.

What now? When you’re considering taking a big step like becoming an entrepreneur, it’s easy to get caught up in all the reasons why you shouldn’t or can’t do it. In the comment section below, I’d like you to write a sentence about why you think people SHOULD become social entrepreneurs. Start your answer with “Because…” For example, “Because who will take action if I don’t?”

Ed note: We’ll pick five comments at random to receive a free copy of Rupert Scofield’s “The Social Entrepreneur’s Handbook,” on Friday, November 18. We’ll contact the winner via email, so make sure you use an email address where we can notify you if win. Good luck!

The world is stupefied by the Bangladeshi government’s malevolent campaign against microcredit pioneer Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus and the government’s attempts to take control of the Grameen Bank. Bangladeshis speak of a well-known grudge harbored by the country’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, pointing to her own lobby for the Nobel Peace Prize, as well as to her ill-concealed acrimony towards Yunus after his short-lived effort to build an alternative political party in 2007.

Sheikh Hasina’s government has charged Yunus with everything but the kitchen sink. There are claims that Yunus is “too old” to run the bank, that his post is “illegal” and that Grameen Bank has not eradicated poverty in Bangladesh. So obvious is the culmination of PM Hasina’s longstanding personal hostility towards Yunus, that any attempts to attach “good governance” justifications behind her persecution appear to be disingenuous. Grameen Bank has appealed the government’s move to oust Yunus from his leadership post and Yunus’ position at the bank now hangs on the March 15 verdict of the Bangladeshi Supreme Court.

World leaders, development organizations, and opinion leaders have spoken out in support of Yunus. Bangladeshis, too, are vocal about their support as well as their embarrassment of the government’s 180 degree swivel away from liberal traditions and respect for civil society organizations. But no words or actions are persuading the government to relent.

Whatever schadenfreude PM Hasina seems to be feeling from tarnishing Bangladesh’s reputation, it cannot be enough to offset the misery that could befall the poorest people in her own country. Grameen Bank is 95 percent owned by approximately 8.3 million borrowers, primarily consisting of low-income Bangladeshi women. The Bangladesh government holds a 5 percent stake. The abrupt dismissal of Muhammad Yunus could create a crisis of confidence at the bank. Grameen borrowers are already anxious. According to Romila Khatun, 53, “Grameen Bank was established by Yunus for the poor people like us, not by the government. He brought attention of the world to Bangladesh through his activities and the government now is trying to destroy it.” Another borrower, Fazilatunnesa, 52, from Khulna who built a poultry farm with the money from the Grameen says: “I am really stunned to know about the removal of Yunus. Grameen loans helped me come out of extreme poverty.”

Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, the chair of the world’s largest NGO, BRAC has said: “A big capital of such organizations is the intrinsic community level trust that they have earned. This trust element must not be underestimated. If this trust is lost, then there may be delinquencies, intentional refusal to repay loans, or large-scale withdrawal of savings by the members.”

An organization of Grameen’s size and stature should definitely develop a succession plan for its sustainability. Yunus himself has expressed a desire to hand over his duties to a successor. What we find disturbing is the politically motivated and personal nature of the attacks that have been set in motion to remove Yunus without proper consideration of the impact of those actions. This week, the world’s leading microfinance institutions warned: “Forced removal [of Dr. Yunus] creates unnecessary risk for the more than 8 million borrowers-owners of the bank.”

Indeed, the poor have been the main beneficiaries of Yunus’ diligence and hard work in building up Grameen Bank over the last three decades. Aside from providing small loans to the poor through the bank, Yunus has created several additional initiatives which have lifted living standards for the poor, including rural telecommunications, food security and sustainable livelihoods through aquaculture and dairy resources, as well as renewable energy access in remote areas. It would be a shame to see even the smallest negative impact on such initiatives in a country where about 60 million people live below the poverty line.

Anyone who cares about global poverty should care about what is happening with Yunus and contribute in whatever way they can to preserve the integrity of a great man and the institution he has built. Yunus’ contribution to poverty reduction is indisputable. He has recast poor people from being seen as passive recipients of aid to entrepreneurial and reliable people, and has provided hope to millions of under-served women. Today, there are some 7,000 microfinance institutions serving 16 million poor people worldwide. Just as importantly, Yunus’ influence and words have moved thousands of business leaders, academics, and social entrepreneurs into further activities on behalf of the poor. It is time that advocates of the poor all around the world – irrespective of their views on the impact of microfinance –- stand together with Yunus against this gross injustice.

In Rwanda, gender equality is real. For example, more than 50 percent of the Rwandan senators are women. The chief justice is a woman. Approximately 40 percent of the state ministers are women, including the ministers of agriculture, of trade, of foreign affairs. Indeed, women are empowered in Rwanda.

At Urwego Opportunity Bank (UOB) we are also empowering women in several ways. To name a couple, more than 90 percent of our clients are women and 55 percent of our staff are women.

Recently, Alice Gasatura (pictured at left), director of credit support, was on a three-week tour to the US as part of the fund raising team of Opportunity International-US. She shared her life story as well as the client transformation stories. She visited Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Seattle; Los Angeles; Dallas; Atlanta and more. She is one of the most senior women on staff at UOB and she was the first female staff member to travel to the U.S. as an ambassador of UOB.

We have also sent five middle management female staff (pictured at left) to a month-long training session in Nairobi, Kenya. This training was sponsored by Goldman Sachs as part of its campaign to develop 10,000 Women entrepreneurs in developing countries. During their training period, they learned 23 management topics on microfinance.

They will be deployed, along with other staff who have been trained elsewhere, to share their knowledge with their colleagues through the UOB Academy to be established in 2011. I hope to see more women empowered to carry out important tasks in Rwanda going forward, not only at UOB, but also among our clients.

Opportunity International’s loan officers are going green. They are traveling to loan client locations with the assistance of electric bicycles. If electric cars are the epitome of a culture that is constantly trying to reduce its carbon footprint, then electric bicycles (e-bikes) rank in the same category. That’s why Daryl Skoog, Opportunity International’s SVP of technology, is so enthused about deploying e-bikes to the field.

According to Skoog, “With our rural expansions, we recognized that transportation would become a challenge in getting our loan officers to their customers. We were seeking a low-cost mode of transportation with a target of 5 cents per mile, versus the 50 cents per mile it costs us per officer today. Bicycles are a common mode of transport throughout the world, so finding a way to use bicycles that would transport our loan officers and leave them with energy to do their job all day long led us to this innovation.”

Currently in the pilot phase of implementation, two e-bikes each have been sent to partners in Rwanda, Tanzania, Mozambique, Ghana, India and Malawi. Kenya and Uganda are also set to receive e-bikes soon. The purpose of the pilot phase is to obtain feedback from the users as to how well they are working, get an idea of how reliable they are, and how much maintenance will be required. In the future, regional maintenance contracts may be established with local businesses which will also help stimulate growth in local economies.

In addition to the 350 watt, rear hub-based electric motor, the rider can pedal the e-bike like a regular bicycle, or use a combination of both to go even faster. Using the electric motor alone, the e-bike is capable of attaining speeds of up to 18 mph (29 km/h), but with pedal-assist, it can go as fast as 30-35 mph (48-56 km/h). Depending on the hilliness of the terrain, the battery has a range of 15-18 miles (24-29 kilometers), and charging takes 3-6 hours.

The initial feedback coming from users has been overwhelmingly positive. Skoog states, “Early comments coming back are telling us that hills are a lot easier to climb with the e-bike. Just like with that special head-turning automobile, an e-bike also turns heads. People notice that you are not riding just an ordinary bike, but something special, and when you can go uphill almost as easily as on flat ground, it gets their attention.”

Hopefully, many more loan officers will soon be turning heads as the e-bikes work their way into the mainstream of tools that help them accomplish their jobs more effectively and efficiently.

- John Larson, MIS division of Opportunity International

For people looking to learn more about microfinance and global development, network and meet microfinance experts from all over the world, as well as find out how to fight global poverty, our conference is the event to attend.

Opportunity’s 2010 Fall Microfinance Conference is happening this weekend, from Friday, Oct. 8 to Saturday, Oct. 9, in Washington, D.C.

If you can’t come to D.C., you don’t have to miss out. We’ll be streaming live video from each of our four plenary sessions at the conference. Tune in to watch live video of speakers such as:

Go to Opportunity’s video streaming registration page, enter your name and email, and we will send you a login to access videos.

Watch our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter [http://twitter.com/OpportunityIntl] for reminders and updates on session schedules. Plus, subscribe to Opportunity’s blog for our complete coverage of other speakers, sessions and photos from the conference. Do not miss the chance to be a part of this event!

-Emily Riemer, Opportunity International

To help build a local primary school, Maria took out her first $101 loan from Opportunity International. Today (four loans later), that school teaches 500 students.

But that’s not all. Maria now runs a catering business and a poultry farm that raises 400 chicks. She’s built a house for her children—and she’s been able to send them both to school. Maria’s hard work and dedication is ensuring brighter futures not only for her two children, but for all the children in her community.

I met Maria on my first trip to Uganda. Her hard work and success is an inspiration to me, and hopefully to mothers everywhere who struggle to provide for their families and to lift themselves out of poverty.

I encourage you to take just a few moments and be inspired by the tributes posted on the Global Opportunity Quilt, honoring mothers like Maria and many more significant women who have shaped our lives. Help us build the Global Opportunity Quilt and help a mother in the developing world work her way out of poverty. Your contribution will touch one mother’s heart and change another woman’s life this Mother’s Day.

-Ruth-Anne Renaud, The Women’s Opportunity Network, Opportunity International

Although anyone is welcome to open accounts at the new bank, it targets women who have inadequate capital to grow their businesses. While traditional banks require title deeds or other proof of wealth to open account, the Women’s Bank only asks for an ID and $2 in savings, making it much more accessible to women in a country where a third of the population earns less than $1.25 a day. There are also no monthly fees.
Bank officials say that the opening was the result of years of campaigning by women’s groups. From the East African:

“Women’s groups called for the establishment of this type of bank way back in 1999. They wanted a place where they would be listened to and where their needs would be taken into account,” said Ms Chacha [Margareth Mattabi Chacha, the bank’s executive director].

“It took them 10 years to collect the necessary funds. Their biggest challenge was to satisfy all the conditions needed to be recognised as a bank. So far, the initiative is a success,” she said.

Once the bank is firmly entrenched, the founders plan to expand regionally and, eventually, across the continent.

Although the bank is just a few days old, plans are at advanced stages to open branches in other Tanzanian towns.

“Many women live in the countryside,” said Ms Chacha. “Trips to ATM machines are long and costly. We will make banking available through mobile phones, a service provided by a number of banks in Africa,” she said.

Two weeks after it opened, the Women’s Bank now has over 500 customers, 70% of whom are women. In addition to helping women open accounts, bank staff also teach them basic business skills and money management. Officials hope that the availability of staff to walk women through the various steps and procedures will help make the process less intimidating for Tanzanian women, who like most African women are unlikely or unable to take advantage of formal banks. According to a 2006 World Bank survey, only 5% of Tanzanian women use banking services, compared to 11% of men.

Helping women overcome barriers to accessing credit and controlling their own finances is widely accepted as a key step in transforming communities in the world’s poorest countries. For years, microfinance institutions have targeted women as the recipients of small, low-interest loans on the premise that money invested in women is money invested in families and communities. A study in Brazil, for example, found that a child’s survival probability increases by about 20% when income is in the hands of the mother.

When matched with social and political opportunities, economic empowerment for women can have a multiplier effect on families and communities. So watch Tanzania over the next few years. It’s a country that has made significant progress in areas like health and education in the past decade, but this recent development might be the first step towards a new era.

-Nora Coghlan

Having grown up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Opportunity International President and CEO Kadita “A.T.” Tshibaka experienced poverty first hand. Thanks to a hard working family and a timely scholarship, Kadita attended Dartmouth College, where he earned his MBA before starting a career at Citibank. His subsequent success in international banking and his passion for the poor have now led him to Opportunity International – and back to the DRC.

With half of the DRC living on less than $1 per day, the Congolese native is leading the organization’s efforts to bring microloans, savings and insurance services to a country of 66.5 million people.
Recently, Kadita led a small delegation of Opportunity supporters and staff to the DRC to witness firsthand both the challenges and possibilities that exist for his home country.

“As I shook hands with start-up business owners, I was struck by the great potential for microfinance to help expand their businesses,” reflects Kadita. “These entrepreneurs work hard to provide for their families in a country where so many are fortunate when they can eat three or four times a week. They are very focused and determined to succeed. Opportunity International will make a significant difference in their lives, supporting them with adaptable microfinance products and services.”

In the DRC, Kadita listened to the working poor and learned about their need for loans, savings and insurance. He appealed to prominent political, economic, church, and social-sector leaders, who were all excited about the prospect of an Opportunity International presence in the DRC. He met with organizations already in the country to hear about their triumphs and their struggles.

“We bank on the spirit of people and on their hopes and dreams,” Kadita continues. “The people that we met saw this and promised their support. We are both humbled and very encouraged by what we experienced.”

Kadita firmly believes in microfinance as a working solution to poverty. More specifically, he is adamant that banking in the DRC is key to the development of Africa. The DRC has the third largest population and the second largest land area in sub-Saharan Africa. With 99% of the population lacking basic banking services, raising funds for an Opportunity International Bank in the DRC has become one of the organization’s top priorities.

To learn more about Opportunity’s commitment to providing microfinance solutions to the working poor in almost 30 countries, visit www.opportunity.org.

- Sonja Egeland Kelly, Opportunity International

The Grand Marche market in Kinshasa brims with tens of thousands of vendors. To the untrained eye, the market is full of chaos and confusion. To those who dare to look past the sea of people, however, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s largest market is an organized, catalogued, and thriving economic system.

Delegates from Opportunity International on a recent trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo soon discovered that there was more to the story than met the western-trained eye. Visitors are required to gain permission from the Queen of the Market (a title of true honor) to wander around the winding pathways between tightly-packed stalls. The Mayor of the Market lists the vendors present and their businesses as he proudly shows off his domain. The infrastructure is unexpected, and looks different than traditional infrastructure, but it works.

In a market like this it is hard to believe that only 1% of the DRC’s 66.5 million people have bank accounts.

Without access to formal financial services, the vendors in this marketplace are unable to get a loan that will help them to grow their business. They cannot safely save the profits that they make. They do not have the ability to take out insurance to keep them from losing their business if a fire devastated the market. They cannot gain additional structured training.

Opportunity International, a ONE partner organization, has plans to open a formal financial institution (or FFI) in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ultimately, the organization’s goal is to bring loans, savings, insurance, and training to those who are living on less than $2 per day. With 99% of the population in need of banking services, Opportunity is poised to enter a market with much potential.

In this country roughly the geographical size of Europe, plagued by war, economic instability, and corruption, an Opportunity International formal financial institution can help to make the difference between families being able to afford only three meals per week to families being able to afford three meals per day.

To learn more about Opportunity’s commitment to providing microfinance solutions to the working poor in almost 30 countries, visit www.opportunity.org.

-Sonja Egeland Kelly, Opportunity International

One of Opportunity’s clients in India, Selvi Mani, just told us:

“We have reduced our consumption of vegetables and meat. Last week, we went to the market and brought provisions for ($4.50) This week, the same items cost ($7).”