Muhammad Yunus was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his Grameen Bank and for his noble efforts to create economic opportunity for the people at the lowest rungs of the social ladder. The Nobel Committee said that lasting peace cannot be achieved until a huge segment of the population throws off the shackles of poverty.
Yunus managed to translate vision into practical action for the benefit of millions of people, not only in Bangladesh but also in many other countries. Yunus and his “bank for the poor” have shown that even “les miserables” can, if given the opportunity, strive and succeed at obtaining self-reliance through economic empowerment.
There is not enough room here to explain in detail the financial loaning mechanism behind the success of Grameen Bank, but what I have learned made me reflect upon our youth, many of whom have great ambitions, ideas and projects but lack access to the capital that can turn their visions into reality.
Why can’t we have banks that cater to the needs and circumstances of our youth?
While surfing the Internet, I came across the website www.youthbank.org.uk. It is an innovative grant-making initiative in the UK run by young people for young people. It provides small grants to fund young people’s ideas that benefit their communities. We Saudis also have similar initiatives, such as the Abdul Latif Jameel Community Services Program to support small businesses and projects. We also have the Centennial Fund and other public programs aiming to support small companies and institutions.
Benefiting from these programs requires great effort. Perhaps the most important and fastest way to spread the word about these projects to our youth is through the Internet. The percentage of youth in our communities is huge, and public and private job vacancies remain limited. Therefore, we have a choice of encouraging our young generation to become self-employed. Yet the idea demands capital and specialized banks. The private sector and the financial institutions should contribute to providing financial assistance to support small institutions or businesses founded by young men and women.
We must not neglect the important role banks can play in economically developing our communities.
