Success Stories
The streets of Tirana, Albania, are littered with garbage. Dirty children beg and sleep on sidewalks. The government is weak and close to anarchy after pyramid schemes collapsed, causing riots and plunging nearly everyone into poverty. In this challenging environment, Rick Halmekangas opened an Opportunity International Partner in the summer ...
Albania is the poorest country in Europe, and business credit is not available. Microcredit loans are the poor entrepreneurs' only hope. Opportunity International began working in Albania in 1999. They found that loan groups of four to six people who guarantee each other's loans was a good way to introduce ...
The democracy wave rolling through Eastern Europe hit Albania last, but this is one Balkan country that did not plunge into civil war. The people were too hungry. Unemployment exceeded 60 percent, and 70 percent faced starvation. People who managed to stay employed were spared the suffering of their countrymen. ...
At 20, Hemo Lata Das married a Hindu priest (otherwise known as a Baishnab or Sadhu). He tried to support their family by begging door-to-door. This did not generate much income. He did not permit Hemo to work outside of the home for it was against his religious beliefs. With ...
Anwara Khatun joined Grameen Bank in 1987 and is now the “village phone lady” for Chamurkhan. Grameen Telecom, a non-profit member of the Grameen family that is a major shareholder in GrameenPhone, concentrates on assisting one Grameen Bank borrower in each village to set up a “village pay phone” that ...
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