Small Change

Help people help themselves: That's the idea behind microcredit. Small loans-sometimes no more than $50-can radically improve the life of a poor family. Where development aid and billion-dollar loans fail, microcredit is emerging as the success story in the battle against world poverty. People who were previously considered "unbankable" no longer have to look to loan sharks for funding. With microcredit, they can become owners of small businesses. And it turns out they nearly always repay their loans on time. In many countries, professional organizations have become active in the field of microfinancing. To research this book, Kamp traveled to Kenya, Uganda, Bolivia and India to speak with the people who grant microcredit and those who receive it. Their stories make it clear that microcredit is a tremendous stimulus for economic and social development and, in particular, for people's self-awareness.