In this issue

• GF Partner MBK Tops MIX 100 Global
• GF Launches  Poverty Progress Measurement Tool
• Volunteer to End Poverty 
• Donor Spotlight: Jordan McKay 
• StopPovertyNow.org a Success 
• Fonkoze: Improving Lives through Loans and Education   
• Connecting Cameroon's Rural Poor
• Microfinance Reaches 100M Poor Worldwide
• Muhammad Yunus to Visit US

GF Partner MBK Tops MIX 100 Global Rankings

Grameen Foundation partner MBK Ventura of Indonesia is the top microfinance institution (MFI) in the second annual MIX 100 Global Composite ranking of MFIs. MBK leads a list of 18 GF and Grameen-Jameel partners that cracked the top 100. More

The poor women who take out microloans through GF partner Fonkoze commit to more than just starting a business. They also receive training and education to improve their lives. Their success was profiled on NPR's Day to Day. Listen to the story.

Grameen-Jameel Symposium Connects MFIs and Investors

Seventy delegates from the international community met with nine Arab MFIs at a Grameen-Jameel Microfinance Limited (Grameen-Jameel) symposium designed to promote microfinance as a viable investment, while teaching MFIs how to tap into this valuable market. More

Connecting Cameroon’s Poor through Village Phone

For the rural poor in Cameroon, isolation from the modern world provides a significant barrier to escaping poverty, cutting off valuable, life-changing information about health, agriculture and business. The launch of Village Phone in Cameroon will bring access to information to 3000 rural villages throughout the country. More

Nobel Peace Prize winner, Professor Muhammad Yunus, in U.S.

GF Board Member, and Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, is in the U.S. on a multi-city tour to promote the paperback release of his book Creating A World Without Poverty.  Visit the GF Events page for details.

Social Performance Measurement Tool Tracks Client Progress Out of Poverty

New measurement tools, such as the Grameen Foundation’s Progress out of Poverty Index (PPI), are providing investors with information about the progress of microfinance clients in their efforts to escape poverty.  More

A Lasting Legacy

 “When asked what he would do with a million dollars, Jordan said he would create an organization that provides microfinance to small businesses around the world.”

Jordan McKay's dedication to creating a world free of poverty became his legacy.  More 

Thank You for Making StopPovertyNow.org a Success

Thanks to your generous support, the StopPovertyNow.org is halfway to our goal of raising $100K! Many of you rose to the challenge posed by the $45K match pool provided  by the generosity of an anonymous donor; and by Betty Sams of Washington, DC in memory of her husband Jim Sams, former board chair of Grameen Foundation; and Reed Oppenheimer of Tulsa, OK, former board chair of Grameen Foundation. Help us keep the site going by sharing with a friend! Honor a loved on on Valentines Day!

Over 100 Million Poorest Families have Received a Microloan

More than 106 million of the world’s poorest families received a microloan in 2007, surpassing a goal set ten years earlier, according to a report released January 26, 2009 by the Microcredit Summit Campaign. More