GreenMicrofinancing

Fonkoze is Haiti's largest microfinance with over 50,000 borrowers, of which over 20,000 have lost most, if not all of their worldly assets due to four recent storms that have racked Haiti.  People were already reeling from the huge increases in food and fuel prices and these storms destroyed major sectors of their economic and food security. test

In the Artibonite Valley, which used to be Haiti's rice bowl, 75% of the crop was destroyed and across the island banana tree, laiden with fruit were sweep to the ground and will take years to recover.  And Gonaives, Haiti's 3rd largest city, which was devastated in 2004 has been flooded again, creating over 50,000 homeless, many of whom are Fonkoze clients.

Haiti had no reserves going into this hurricane session and now is a time when you dollars can make the critical difference to the poor of Haiti.  Please consider a donation to Fonkoze today; it will make a difference. 

 

 

Micro-Loans, Macro-Impact!  A conference hosted at the University of Illinois on 4 October by the National Organization for Business and Engineering (NOBE) and Entreprenuers without Borders, provided an opportunity for students to learn about microfinance and how in practical terms, it is impacting people in developing countries around the world. 

 We discussed Haiti and their 200 year descent from the wealthiest country in the French Empire to the the poorest in the western hemisphere, racked with poverty and environmenal devastation.  We talked about possible solutions to the poverty and envirnomental devastation, including the replication of the Grameen Bank Village Phone program, FonkoSel Aktive pa Digicel and the Jatropha Pepinye; a nursery to help local growers plant jatropha curcas for feedstock for biodiesel. 

The high level of interest and the depth of questioning from the participants was a very heartening experience!

As the Japan Airlines 767 descended through the clouds to the runway in Hanoi, I remembered other days and other times. A not so long ago time when the US and Vietnam were at war. But instead of devastation, we pulled up to a modern terminal and 20 minutes later I found myself on a smooth, modern highway riding into a well light city. A marked contrast from my last ride into Port au Prince and my long held image of a city under aerial attack from the 60s and a stark reminder of the futility of war.

The next day, I wandered the streets of Hanoi, waiting for the conference to begin in the afternoon and visited what remained of the ‘Hanoi Hilton’. The French colonial prison, Maison Cetnrale where Vietnamese had been held by the French and captured American flyers were held by the Vietnamese. Most of the prison has been demolished to make way for a skyscraper, but enough remains that you get a good sense of the horror the place represented, in both colonial times and then following independence. It was clear that American prisoners were treated by the Vietnamese like the French had treated them; fortunately it seems the cycle of violence has finally been broken!

Maybe we can leaarn something from that suffering and break the cycle of poverty here at the Asia Microfinance Forum 2008!

Asian Pacific Regional Microcredit Summit / Bank Indonesia Annual International Seminar: Macroeconomic Impact of Climate Change The Microcredit Summit ended late on Wednesday evening and the Macroeconmic Seminar began on Thursday evening and of course, it was being held in the hotel next door. Suddenly I found myself transported from a land microcredit and NGOs to one of bankers, academics and economists. Talk about a ‘mind bending’ experience! Both were great events, but talk about different. The good news is that both groups really recognize and acknowledge that climate change is a ‘clear and present danger’ and will have a devastating impact first and foremost on those most vulnerable, the poor. The bad news is that while recognizing the problem, neither group had any ‘magic solutions’ but neither do our ‘fearless’ leaders!   But of course it wasn’t without some fun, even with bankers and economists believe it or not. On Friday evening we traveled to Uluwatu temple where we saw another performance of Garuda (the Indonesian Airline) the magic bird and the transportation vehicle of the Hindu god, Vishnu. That performance was followed by an ultra-modern Indonesian group, complete of course with electric guitars, exotic musical arrangements and 24th century electronic fiddle; what a treat!

On Tuesday night I thought I was back in the cellular industry with the start-up of the Qualcomm Indonesian village phone program, Uber ESIA. They had a big launch party complete with dancers and music, and free flowing food and drinks. Professor Yunis was the featured speaker but of course, the real treat was the conversations with people like the movie producer from New York that is working on a film about Grameen. Gayle Ferrario has produced two films about Grameen and the 3^rd promises to be spectacular.

I also had a chance to visit with the visionary founder and head of Grameen Shakti, Dipul Barua. We were able to talk at length about his experience in making clean, renewable energy available to over 100,000 homes.

On Wednesday morning there was a break in our schedule so Dan, Elizabeth and I were able to see a little more of Bali than the hotel and convention center; in this case one of the six Hindu temples in Bali. On the 40 minute drive to the temple, we must have passed 10 other temples and then suddenly we crossed a ridgeline and were looking through the mist at huge (30 ft) breakers rolling in from the Indian Ocean and crashing into the 300 ft cliffs. No wonder Bali is considered a surfers paradise and of course Dan was very disappointed the surfing contest that is currently going on was a kilometer away and 100 meters below.

 

 

As we were getting out of the car, our driver warned us about the monkeys; it seems they will take glasses and earrings and trade them back for food; pretty smart little guys. As it turned out, the visit was uneventful, but the scenery was spectacular and the peace divine. This is still an active temple, so we were not able to go in all the parts and since Dan was wearing shorts when we arrived, he was covered with a sarong on the tour.

When we returned, Dan found out that his efforts to setup an interview with Professor Yunus had been rewarded so I got to have a 15 minute, on camera dialogue with him; what a privilege, video to follow!

And then when I got back to my hotel, I had a call from my son who had arrived in Bali. He lives and works in the Middle East and I haven’t seen him in ‘too long’ so this is an extra, special treat!

The energy and microfinance presentation went well today.  I opened my talk, reminding people of the ‘bad omens' Professor Yunus sees on the horizon: rising food and fuel prices, slowing economy, climate change and environmental degradation and the estimate that 100 million people are in danger of slipping back into abject poverty unless these issues are addressed successfully.

It was disappointing there weren't more people at the session, but the people who were there were amazing, as is the work Grameen Shakti is doing in Bangladesh and ESAF in India.  The Managing Director, Dipal Barua showed me his daily solar panel installation count, more 300 yesterday.  When I visited Shakti in 2003 they were doing less than 20 installations a day.  There really is a demand for energy!

This afternoon I did interviews with five amazing women; Gita and Silvia from Indonesia, Maree and Rebecca from Australia and Maaike from the Netherlands via Australia.  All had fascinating stories about their current work and their path to the Microcredit Summit.  The discussions ranged far and wide, but focused on renewable energy and microfinance's role in getting clean energy into the hands of the those at the "Base of the Pyramid'!

Dan will be editing these interviews and will have them on the blog shortly!

 It is interesting to note the shift in energy as the President and Governors move on and the delegates ‘do their thing;' much more ‘laid back' and relaxed!  The opening session is in a smaller room and people are arriving much later, of course that might have something to do with their activities after the meetings yesterday.

 

 

Last night we went to a reception sponsored by Unitus to announce their move into for-profit funding.  The reception was in a beautiful garden between the hotel and the beach; warm gentle breeze, soft sounds of the surf, good food and great conversation.  It is venues like this where the real benefits of a meeting like this are realized. 

I spent a considerable amount of time talking to a young woman who wants to work in Haiti and with an older woman from the UK who has lived in India for the past 25 years; she married an Indian.  She works on social performance measurement (they ask the question: Are MFIs really changing people's lives?) and knows many of the people I do from Fonkoze in Haiti.  She also told me about the Social Performance Taskforce's efforts to incorporate environmental impact into their measurements - I love it when synchronicity happens! 

This morning I rode to the convention center with a man from BRAC in Bangladesh working in Afghanistan and an American working in Beijing.  In Afghanistan, conditions have improved in Kabul over the past three years but degenerated markedly in the provinces and yes, the pollution is as bad as everyone says in Beijing!

We had to arrive at the Convention Center an hour early today because of security; it is everywhere!  The President and First Lady of Indonesia were part of the opening ceremony.    While waiting, I had a chance to discussion technology and education with a young woman from Microsoft (I'm not sure why I continue to gravitate to the corporate types), saw a beautiful Indonesian dance performance, heard more of the exotic music of Bali and was reminded with a video, why we are here. 

Jodiman was married at 10 in 1962, had her first child at 15 and was living in abject poverty when she first heard of the Grameen Bank and microfinance in 1980.  She took out her first loan for $10, despite warnings from friends she would be killed by the bank if she couldn't repay the loan, purchased a rice husker and to is still a Grameen client.  Today, she and her children and her grandchildren enjoy a level of prosperity never dreamed of when she first joined Grameen.  A perfect example of why 98%+ of microfinance borrowers are women.

All the opening speakers addressed the current fuel and food crisis in someway but Professor Yunus summed it up the best.  In his comments he told us of the progress that has been made in alleviating poverty, mainly in Asia but also listed "bad omens of terrible things coming up".  These he said include "rising oil and food prices, the slowing economy, climate conditions and environmental degradation."  He then went on to say "microcredit can be a strong help in addressing these issues by extending agricultural credit and focusing on women."

Given the work we've been doing in Haiti with 2^nd generation biofuels (jatropha curcas), I couldn't agree more.  Agriculture policies in the US and EU have caused some of the problem, it is now time for them to be part of the solution. 

As President Yudhoyono said "microcredit is a tool to promote peace, stability and political development" and without a concerted efforts on the part of developed countries, 100 million people are in danger of slipping back into poverty according to the World Bank.   

Elizabeth and I arrived last night from the states around 11pm after a 27 hour long transit to be greeted with lush tropical breezes and the sounds of light surf in the background. The musicians had all gone to bed and we had to wait until today to experience the ethereal traditional Balinese music; which we did multiple times.

 Speaking of a long time, I’ve waited many, many years to visit Bali; the Air Force scheduled me to fly a trip to Bali and before leaving the states told me I didn’t need a passport – Wrong! But military intelligence is a whole different subject.

On our first day here, Bali is more than living up to its billing; a land of contrasts and beauty. We ran into Prof. Yunus and Sam Daley Harris in the lobby of the convention hotel, got a sneak preview of a really exciting announcement that will be coming from the microcredit summit tomorrow – sorry but I’m sworn to secrecy. And thanks to Dan, we tracked down the elusive Solar Power Indonesia which has lots of cool technology including a wind turbine on the roof and a sun tracking solar panel in the parking lot. We plan on returning later in the week to learn more about their clients and why they are looking for clean energy.

Please note the lack of comments about the beautiful beaches and pools; while we have seen a number of them, duty has called and I have yet to avail myself of their warmth and charm! And so it goes!

 Currently the world is facing higher food and energy prices, both of which are creating problems for the most vulnerable of the world’s people; those 2 billion plus living on $2 or less a day, but it doesn’t have to be this way.

Yes, higher energy cost, demand, and subsidies have driven up the cost for staples like corn, soybeans and rice.  Yes, a significant percentage of the corn and soybean crops are going into making ethanol and biodiesel.  And yes, some land across the globe has been converted or cleared to make way for bioenergy crops but none of this inevitable.

We need an ‘Apollo Program’ for energy that will begin to reverse the demand for foreign oil while fully recognizing the social and environmental impact of the current policies and begins to make choices that are good for people and the planet.

First among these is the acknowledgement that conservation is our quickest and most effective way to reduce dependence on imported oil.  Following that, support for research and development of so called 2nd Generation feedstock is critical if we want to reduce pressure on food.  Corn and soybeans represent 1st generation crops that are seen by many as overall energy losers.  And while if I’m being very charitable, some positive benefit is being derived from them in that the critical infrastructure to produce, transported, and use ethanol is being developed. 

It however, can’t be an end point but only a very short pause on the way to 2nd generation feed stocks such as jatropha curcas and miscanthus. They must in turn relieve the pressure on food while providing clear and undeniable energy and environmental benefits.

Kathleen Robbins, GreenMicrofinance Director of Clean Energy