VOA慢速英语20061023a

DEVELOPMENT REPORT - Grameen Bank Proves Poor People Are Worthy¹ of LoansBy Jill Moss²

Broadcast: Monday, October 23, 2006

This is the VOA Special English Development Report.


Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus speaks during a press conference shortly after opening ceremony of Grameen International Conference on Micro-credit in Beijing, October 22, 2006

The Nobel Peace Prize for two thousand six was awarded earlier this month to economist³ Muhammad Yunus and his Bangladeshi microfinance organization, the Grameen Bank. The bank lends small amounts of money to poor people, especially women, who are unable to get traditional loans. Mister Yunus says he started Grameen because he wanted to see if banking⁴ could be done without collateral⁵. Collateral, such as property or investments, secures the repayment⁶ of traditional loans.

The Grameen bank, however, does not ask for guarantees or repayment in land or other property if the borrower is not able to repay the loan. A person's promise to repay the loans is all that is needed. No one is rejected for a loan. This trust has resulted in a near perfect loan repayment rate during the bank's thirty-year history.

Since Grameen's launch in nineteen seventy-six, the idea of micro-financing for the poor has spread to other countries. In the United States, for example, small loan programs are serving poor Native Americans living on protected land. Farming communities and poor city areas have also seen a rise in micro-financing organizations. The Seattle non-profit group Washington CASH is one example. This group provides small loans to single mothers, refugees and former criminals.

Today, the Grameen Bank has about six million borrowers in seventy thousand villages throughout Bangladesh. Ninety-seven percent of the loans go to poor women. An average loan equals less than one hundred dollars. The bank expects to provide more than eight hundred million dollars in loans this year. In addition, the bank gives about thirty thousand financial awards to poor students each year.

Worldwide, the Grameen Foundation has established relationships with fifty-two partners in twenty-two countries. Millions of people in Africa, Central and South America, and the Middle East have received assistance.

Mister Yunus says he believes credit should be considered a human right. He says money is power. The economist believes poverty would end if the world could create a system of credit for poor people.

And that's the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to www.unsv.com. I'm Steve Ember.

1 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

2 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

3 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

4 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

5 collateral   

adj.平行的；旁系的；n.担保品

参考例句：

• Many people use personal assets as collateral for small business loans.很多人把个人财产用作小额商业贷款的抵押品。
• Most people here cannot borrow from banks because they lack collateral.由于拿不出东西作为抵押，这里大部分人无法从银行贷款。

6 repayment   

n.偿还，偿还款；报酬

参考例句：

• I am entitled to a repayment for the damaged goods.我有权利索取货物损坏赔偿金。
• The tax authorities have been harrying her for repayment.税务局一直在催她补交税款。