Friday, July 13, 2007

Dr. Muhammad Yunus on how microenterprise can help "fill the gap" in US financial services


Prior to his live address at the AEO 2007 Annual Conference, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus spoke to attendees via satellite and discussed the need to fill the financial services gap in the United States through microfinance and microenterprise development services. Despite America’s enormous wealth, he points out, there are many whom it does not benefit. He also asks the question, "How many people in the United States do not qualify or are not eligible to get financial services from the conventional banking system?" Answering, he says, "You just count them, city by city, county by county--how many people simply do not qualify in the eyes of the conventional banking system? Our point is, banking and the financial services should be an inclusive system, not an exclusive system for the privileged people. So microfinance, microenterprise, all these initiatives, fill the gap."

To learn more about how AEO and its members are working to fill this gap, visit http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/

To learn more about Dr. Yunus and Grameen Bank, go to http://www.grameen-info.org/

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Amy McKenna Luz, President and CEO of AEO, on the future of microenterprise, with remarks from Dr. Muhammad Yunus


Amy McKenna Luz, president and CEO of AEO, opened the AEO 2007 Annual Conference by welcoming the membership and attendees to the "final conference of the Association for Enterprise Opportunity," going on to explain the plans to revamp AEO's brand and have a new name by the 2008 conference. In her address, Amy casts a vision of microenterprise becoming a household term, known from within the halls of Congress to corporate boardrooms, university classrooms and beyond. The keynote includes a special satellite address by Dr. Muhammad Yunus, where he discusses the need in the United States for microenterprise.

To learn more about Amy McKenna Luz and her vision for AEO and the microenterprise development industry, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=279

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Dr. Muhammad Yunus Addresses AEO 2007 Conference Attendees!















Dr.Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner, made a surprise appearance at AEO's 2007 Annual Conference. Dr. Yunus was introduced by outgoing AEO Board Chair, Greg Walker-Wilson, who recalled his initial meeting with the economist from Bangladesh many years ago, and the lasting impact of that meeting on Walker-Wilson’s life and career. As he answered questions from the audience, Dr. Yunus spoke passionately and eloquently about the need and opportunity to to expand microenterprise in the U.S.
To learn more about Dr. Yunus' speech, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=2184

To listen to this podcast, click here.