Bangladesh, Nobel Laureate, Yunus

The Grameen Bank started to diversify in the late 1980s when it started attending to unutilised or underutilised fishing ponds, as well as irrigation pumps like deep-tubewells. In 1989, these
diversified interest started growing into separate organisations, as the fisheries project became Grameen Matso (Grameen Fisheries Foundation)and the irrigation project became Grameen Krishi (Grameen Agriculture Foundation). Over time, Grameen initiative had grown into a multifaceted group of profitable and non-profitable ventures, including major projects like Grameen Trust, Grameen Fund etc. The village Phone project of GP had brought cell-phone ownership of 260,000 rural poor in over 50,000 villages since the begining of the project in March 2007.
The success of the Grameen model of microfinancing had inspired similar efforts in a hundred countries throughout the developing world and even in industrialised nations like USA. These grameen loans are utilised by 94 % of the women in rural villages as they are the most economically weaker section of the society.
Recognition;

Muhammad Yunus was awarded the 2006 Nobel Prize, along with Grameen Bank, for their efforts to create economic and social development. Yunus on receiving the Nobel Prize announced that he would use part of his share of the $1.4 million award money for the benifit of low income group of people.

Political Acitivity :

Yunus had a plan to float his ideas through a political party in the name of Citizen's power (Nagarik Shakti) on 18 Feb 2007, but ultimately he had to drop the idea.

Yunus wrote many articles and books on this subject.

Prof. Yunus was invited to deliver Nelson Mandele Annual lecture by the foundation's CEO,Achmat dangor, on the global economic crisis onJuly 2009.

The best saying of Prof. Yunus is "the rich aren't paying their loans back at the moment but the poor are.....every time 99.6 %of our loans. So who is a bigger risk."

President Barrack Obama places a 2009 presidential medal of freedom around the neck od Prof. Yunus. on 12 Aug 2009 at white house.