Women entrepreneurs get support from ASA
Friday, 5 December 2008
Md. Mahbubur Rahman Bulbul
MOST functionaries of the important microfinance institutions (MFI) of the world come to Bangladesh for learning ASA's micro finance model because it is cost-effective and very simple. Accordingly, a 15-member Filipino MFI team came to Bangladesh to visit ASA's programme recently. The name of their organisation is Bank-CARD, Philippines. After theoretical session at the ASA head office, they went to ASA's field level project. They got an idea of ASA from a field level moderator, additional district manager Md. Iqbal Hossain. The visiting team visited some projects of ASA in Dhaka district.
They understand that microloan could help millions of poor women become self-reliant to be able to support their families and employees working in their projects. Microcredit has created a class of micro entrepreneurs in Bangladesh, many of them are women. In Bangladesh, many successful businesses, production houses and firms are owned and managed by women. Some start a business project to uplift their economic status, while others venture into the business arena to do 'something different' or 'something differently' and importantly, worthwhile for the society.
Women entrepreneurs are making their presence felt in rural areas, too. Village women mainly start business for survival. With a little support from microfinance institutions (MFIs), backed by NGOs and social welfare organizations, they can go beyond the subsistence level to make their business activities bigger. These women innovate and change the production system, the fundamental attributes of an entrepreneurs. Because they have modest resources, they are known as micro entrepreneurs. However, they find out new sources of supply of inputs and new markets, just like any other entrepreneur.
The big MFIs in Bangladesh are creating a huge number of women micro entrepreneurs. They are empowering women by providing micro finance. Among them, ASA, BRAC, GRAMIN Bank, BURO Tangail, Jagoroni Chakraw TMSS are popular and effective MFIs in Bangladesh.
ASA is the largest MFI in the world. For the last two years, ASA has been ranked as one of the three best MFIs in the world by the "The Microfinance information Exchange (MIX)", a USA-based internationally recognised microfinance research institution. The report is prepared based on the performance of NGOs/MFIs, throughout the world, in six areas of outreach, scale, profitability, efficiency, productivity and portfolio quality as well as consulting investors, researchers, donors, media. ASA, and two other institutions had best results in all the six areas.
Recently, ASA was included in the prestigious Forbes' Magazine first-ever list of the world's Top 50 Microfinance Institutions (MFI). It is a tribute to ASA's outstanding work and devotion over the years. The fact that the second position has gone to Bandhan, nurtured by ASA, says a lot about the sustainability and scalability of the ASA model.
ASA provides six loan products in Bangladesh very successfully. Small Entrepreneurs Lending (SEL) and Agro-business Loan are most important of them. They are very effective and successful loan programme for women empowerment and the creation of women micro entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Both men and women benefited from ASA's SEL and Agro-business loans. Specially, a large number of women in Bangladesh became self-reliant with financial assistance of ASA's SEL and Agro-business loans.
ASA provides microfinance to 9.0 million poor and helpless people through its 4000 branches. It has the highest member of borrowers in Bangladesh. Most of the borrowers are women. ASA's SEL loan is for the small and emerging entrepreneurs. The programme helps them in running their business to create employment for others, especially the hardcore poor. Initial loan under the SEL ranges from Tk 30,000 to Tk 6,00,000 for one year to two years. The annual service charge on the product is 12.5 per cent.
The Philippines team visited the dairy project of Mowmita Rani Ghoss in the village of Kolatia under Keraniganj thana of Dhaka district. The project is run by a successful woman micro-entrepreneur with financial assistance of ASA. It is named after her. She is 45 years' old. Her husband is Liton Chandraw Ghoses. Once, she was a housewife. But her success made her a model for others. She showed how to make a good earning by selling milk and cow.
In 1990, she was married off. She does not have much education. Their conjugal life was not happy at the initial stage as they faced a lot of financial crisis. Just then, she got in touch with ASA, Kolatia branch of Dhaka district. Branch manager Md. Nowshad Hossain and regional manager Md. Ataur Rahman encouraged her to go for a dairy project at her residence eight years ago. At the beginning, she got a loan of Taka 5000 from ASA. She has a son and a daughter. Her dairy farm is now much bigger with 100 Australian cows. The price of cow ranges from Tk 50,000 to 100,000. Now she is well off.
The writer serves ASA
MOST functionaries of the important microfinance institutions (MFI) of the world come to Bangladesh for learning ASA's micro finance model because it is cost-effective and very simple. Accordingly, a 15-member Filipino MFI team came to Bangladesh to visit ASA's programme recently. The name of their organisation is Bank-CARD, Philippines. After theoretical session at the ASA head office, they went to ASA's field level project. They got an idea of ASA from a field level moderator, additional district manager Md. Iqbal Hossain. The visiting team visited some projects of ASA in Dhaka district.
They understand that microloan could help millions of poor women become self-reliant to be able to support their families and employees working in their projects. Microcredit has created a class of micro entrepreneurs in Bangladesh, many of them are women. In Bangladesh, many successful businesses, production houses and firms are owned and managed by women. Some start a business project to uplift their economic status, while others venture into the business arena to do 'something different' or 'something differently' and importantly, worthwhile for the society.
Women entrepreneurs are making their presence felt in rural areas, too. Village women mainly start business for survival. With a little support from microfinance institutions (MFIs), backed by NGOs and social welfare organizations, they can go beyond the subsistence level to make their business activities bigger. These women innovate and change the production system, the fundamental attributes of an entrepreneurs. Because they have modest resources, they are known as micro entrepreneurs. However, they find out new sources of supply of inputs and new markets, just like any other entrepreneur.
The big MFIs in Bangladesh are creating a huge number of women micro entrepreneurs. They are empowering women by providing micro finance. Among them, ASA, BRAC, GRAMIN Bank, BURO Tangail, Jagoroni Chakraw TMSS are popular and effective MFIs in Bangladesh.
ASA is the largest MFI in the world. For the last two years, ASA has been ranked as one of the three best MFIs in the world by the "The Microfinance information Exchange (MIX)", a USA-based internationally recognised microfinance research institution. The report is prepared based on the performance of NGOs/MFIs, throughout the world, in six areas of outreach, scale, profitability, efficiency, productivity and portfolio quality as well as consulting investors, researchers, donors, media. ASA, and two other institutions had best results in all the six areas.
Recently, ASA was included in the prestigious Forbes' Magazine first-ever list of the world's Top 50 Microfinance Institutions (MFI). It is a tribute to ASA's outstanding work and devotion over the years. The fact that the second position has gone to Bandhan, nurtured by ASA, says a lot about the sustainability and scalability of the ASA model.
ASA provides six loan products in Bangladesh very successfully. Small Entrepreneurs Lending (SEL) and Agro-business Loan are most important of them. They are very effective and successful loan programme for women empowerment and the creation of women micro entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Both men and women benefited from ASA's SEL and Agro-business loans. Specially, a large number of women in Bangladesh became self-reliant with financial assistance of ASA's SEL and Agro-business loans.
ASA provides microfinance to 9.0 million poor and helpless people through its 4000 branches. It has the highest member of borrowers in Bangladesh. Most of the borrowers are women. ASA's SEL loan is for the small and emerging entrepreneurs. The programme helps them in running their business to create employment for others, especially the hardcore poor. Initial loan under the SEL ranges from Tk 30,000 to Tk 6,00,000 for one year to two years. The annual service charge on the product is 12.5 per cent.
The Philippines team visited the dairy project of Mowmita Rani Ghoss in the village of Kolatia under Keraniganj thana of Dhaka district. The project is run by a successful woman micro-entrepreneur with financial assistance of ASA. It is named after her. She is 45 years' old. Her husband is Liton Chandraw Ghoses. Once, she was a housewife. But her success made her a model for others. She showed how to make a good earning by selling milk and cow.
In 1990, she was married off. She does not have much education. Their conjugal life was not happy at the initial stage as they faced a lot of financial crisis. Just then, she got in touch with ASA, Kolatia branch of Dhaka district. Branch manager Md. Nowshad Hossain and regional manager Md. Ataur Rahman encouraged her to go for a dairy project at her residence eight years ago. At the beginning, she got a loan of Taka 5000 from ASA. She has a son and a daughter. Her dairy farm is now much bigger with 100 Australian cows. The price of cow ranges from Tk 50,000 to 100,000. Now she is well off.
The writer serves ASA