Overview

"This book is an introduction to Grameen II, an improved and flexible version of the classical Grameen model that is currently being used to financially empower the poorest families in more than a hundred countries across the globe through savings and loans. It describes how a flagship institution such as Grameen Bank accomplished a complete and effective overhaul of its system. """"The Poor Always Pay Back"""" demystifies Grameen II to policymakers, practitioners and the larger development community and shows that, through the use of Grameen II, Grameen Bank is addressing the frontier issues in microfinance: open access savings, flexible loan products, self reliance and absence of donor dependency for funds, and product development to cater to the needs of the retirees (Grameen Pension Scheme) and their adult children (Higher Education Loans). Valuable to all those interested in the practical steps taken to alleviate poverty in developing countries, """"The Poor Always Pay Back"""" offers one of the first sound proofs of the saving capability of the poor on a large scale. The success of Grameen Bank and the microcredit movement as a whole has proved the credit worthiness of the poor beyond question. Grameen II shows that the poor, given the opportunity, will save a great deal and will always pay back."

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9781565492318

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This book captures very well the central message of Grameen - the poor always pay back... I hope this book will inspire readers to play an active role in creating a world free from poverty. The radical transformation of its products that Grameen Bank engineered at the turn of the century has not yet received the international attention and admiration that it deserves. This timely book sets out the background to the changes and describes in detail the debates and experiments that led to the new services. It is essential reading for institutions around the world that admire or use the Grameen approach, and a contribution to microfinance literature in general. If the Grameen Bank is one of the great inventions of our time, Grameen Bank II is one of the great re-inventions. Spurred by crisis, fundamental premises were re-thought. A bank once known for delivering microcredit turned into an innovator in collecting savings. A bank once known for group lending strengthened its relationships with individual customers. We should all be grateful that two long-time insiders have told the story of a remarkable transformation. Extremely useful for pro-poor bankers, supportive policy leaders of governments and policy-oriented academics and students to have this book on their shelves. This accessible work provides considerable detail about how the bank evolved and why. Highly recommended. An uplifting, readable view of economics. Enthusiastically recommended. The sensitivity exhibited in portraying harsh realities is commendable. The story is at once challenging and motivating... Western society characterizes the poor as 'dirty', 'dishonest', 'lazy' and 'incapable of planning'. The book provides us with overwhelming, concrete evidence to the contrary. The two former students of Grameen's visionary founder Muhammad Yunus offer a balanced perspective. They provide the definitive account of the overhaul in the design of the world's most important microfinance institution.

The sensitivity exhibited in portraying harsh realities is commendable. The story is at once challenging and motivating... Western society characterizes the poor as 'dirty', 'dishonest', 'lazy' and 'incapable of planning'. The book provides us with overwhelming, concrete evidence to the contrary.

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