“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day,  teach a man to fish and he will eat for life”

The majority of the world’s population live on less than A$4 per day. In many countries, there is no government support for the poor and needy. Poverty is the main impediment to improving an individual and a communities circumstances. The United Nations has announced a plan to eradicate poverty by 2025 through Micro-Economic Development (media release August 2005)

Micro-Economic Development (MED) involves the provision of small, low interest loans to people who do not have the necessary collateral to obtain credit from the formal banking sector. By encouraging individuals and families to commence a new business or, expand a current business, that individual or family will then be able to afford more nutritious food, safer housing and adequate healthcare. As businesses grow, parents can send their children to school, save for emergencies and offer jobs to others in the community.

The loan may range between A$50 and upto A$2000 over a term of between 6 months and upto 2 years. The applicant must clearly demonstrate that the business is sustainable by presenting a business plan as part of the loan application process.

MED programs are effective in poverty reduction for many reasons:

• micro enterprises are simple to operate
• they use locally available skills
• they are labour intensive and create significant employment
• they improve the income of those living in poverty, especially women
• they serve as a basis for community participation and empowerment of clients

Key components of MED are:

• access to finance
• access to technology e.g. new plant & animal breeds, computers
• access to information technology and communications e.g. internet
• access to know-how e.g. education, training, job & life skills

“The poor stay poor, not because they are lazy but because they have no access to capital.”