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Dubai: Nobel laureate Professor Mohammad Yunus is to advise the Gulf governments, including the UAE, to enact legislation and establish a regulatory framework for microcredit institutions.
"The Middle East's two million microcredit borrowers represent about 1.33 per cent of the world's 150 million microcredit borrowers," said Professor Mohammad Yunus, who in 2006 won the Nobel Peace Prize for pioneering microcredit that changed the lives of 7.5 million Bangladeshis.
He told Gulf News on the sidelines of the International Islamic Finance Forum in Dubai which kicked off on Sunday, "The region has the lowest penetration of microcredit simply due to lack of initiatives. However, the governments here must enact legislation and set up regulatory bodies to facilitate the growth of microcredit in the region.
"We are talking to the governments of the Gulf countries to set up the regulations for microcredit institutions. I will meet Shaikh Nahyan [Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan] on these issues."
In the Arab world, microcredit has penetrated slightly in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Jordan and Egypt. Yunus will discuss microcredit and social business legislation with Shaikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, whose Abu Dhabi Group has pledged $3 billion investment in Bangladesh.
"I will also be exploring joint venture projects with Shaikh Nahyan on social business projects," he said.
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