In the News

Uganda's Refugee Settlements To Receive Expanded Funding For Private Sector Partnerships

Grameen Foundation is proud to be a partner on Uthabiti Activity that is building resilience and self-reliance for refugees in Uganda. Due to the success of the project, increased funding is being provided to expand and scale.

Best Practices for Collecting Farmer Data in Agriculture

In the realm of agricultural research and policymaking, data reigns supreme. It forms the bedrock upon which informed decisions are made, innovations are fostered, and communities are uplifted. At the heart of this data lie the experiences, insights, and practices of farmers. However, approaching farmers for data collection requires finesse, respect, and a deep understanding of their world.

How TaroWorks Empowers Grameen Foundation’s Field Teams to Increase Access to Refugee Finance

Grameen Foundation's Uthabiti program is powered by TaroWorks. TaroWorks helps to enable Grameen's field staff to provide more efficient and better training and support to VSLAs, who in turn can secure loans and increase their members’ savings, putting their families on a path to overcome extreme poverty – all while improving impact measurement for the program team, and reporting to their funders.

Scaling Biofortified Crops: Role of Farmer Collectives in Combatting Hidden Hunger

Garima Joshi and Anusha Jain, Program Managers at Client Insights for Impact (CII), have co-authored a blog for Wikifarmer. Wikifarmer is a global platform with the mission to empower farmers through educating them and offering them direct access to the commercial markets to sell their products at fair prices.

Grameen Foundation India Launches Strategic Partnership With Ayekart

Grameen Foundation India has launched a strategic partnership with Ayekart, a leading agrifood fintech platform. This collaboration aims to extend Ayekart's Ayekrishi platform (PaaS) along with the market linkage services with embedded finance to Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) connected with Grameen Foundation in India, bolstering financial inclusion and enabling marginalized communities, mainly focusing on women. Ayekart, India's foremost integrated tech platform in the food and agri value chain, is driving a transformation within the segment by unveiling a range of groundbreaking solutions.

Grameen Foundation Partners With RISE-Ghana On New Project $10 Spark

Grameen Foundation facilitates a consultative inception workshop to collate stakeholders’ input to de-risk women at the personal, household and community levels through male engagement and intra-household dialogue mechanism has been held in Tamale.

The workshop, which served as proof-of-concept platform, was to initiate mutual conversation about the possibility of men supporting the business enterprises of their spouses without any unhealthy rivalry and confrontations between them.

India’s Digital Divide Threatens The Progress Of Financial Inclusion

Authors: Anusha Jain - Grameen Foundation India's Program Manager for the Client Insights for Impact Unit and Kushagra Harshavardhan (MicroSave Consulting).

Anusha Jain is a development sector professional serving as a Program Manager for the Client Insights for Impact Unit at Grameen Foundation India. Anusha co-authors this article outlining three key challenges that need to be addressed to fulfill the promise of India’s much-lauded digital public infrastructure.

Choosing Our Words Wisely: Is it Economic Violence, Financial Abuse, or Something Else?

Words carry power and inform our reality. Making a choice of words was one of our tasks in a meeting of the minds a few months ago, when several FinEquity Community of Practice participants met to discuss the concept of financial abuse, particularly financial abuse experienced by women, as a virtually unexplored area of focus for the financial services sector

Grameen Featured In The Global Solutions Journal

Grameen Foundation's Director of Innovations in Agriculture, Lakshmi Iyer, has co-authored an article outlining steps to ensure women smallholder farmers are included in their agrifood systems. Additional authors include Stefan Heinke of Bayer AG and Anastasia Mbatia from Market Alliance. The article focuses on our gender power tools and the power of intra-household dialogues for women smallholder farmers within Village Savings and Lending Associations (VSLAs) in Kenya.

Read The Global Solutions Journal Here

Grameen President Zubaida Bai On Dismantling Gender Norms

Grameen Foundation President and CEO, Zubaida Bai joined a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum and highlighted Grameen's mission to end poverty by investing in the power of women.

Grameen Foundation President Zubaida Bai Discusses Her Inspirations

Zubaida Bai was recently interviewed by Inspired Impact by Orapin. Inspired Impact conducts
interviews with purpose-driven leaders who are helping others and making a positive impact in the world.

USAID Administrator Recognizes Grameen Foundation's Efforts to Advance Gender Equality in Honduras

USAID Administrator, Samantha Power highlights Grameen Foundation's resilience building initiatives in Honduras.

Over the past two years, Grameen Foundation has partnered with USAID on the MujerProspera Challenge to create to impactful solutions that advance women’s economic security and address harmful gender norms.

Along with eight other organizations, we have established sustainable and innovative approaches to promoting women’s decision-making, agency, and access to power; increasing resources and economic opportunities for women; and improving labor protections and safety from gender-based violence in the workplace.

MujerProspera is one example of how we are breaking down barriers and reshaping mindsets, not just for today, but for generations to come.

With our partners and supporters, we are creating a world where poverty is not a life sentence, but one chapter in a story of resilience and triumph.

Grameen Foundation Joins Historic Cohort to Overcome Climate Finance Barriers Across the Global South

InvestHER Climate Resilience Bond is a groundbreaking social bond to enable women-led adaptation-focused agri-SMEs (Small-and Medium-sized Enterprises) in Uganda.

Drawing from successful models in India and Senegal, it provides crucial credit to SMEs, supporting climate-resilient products and services while overcoming financial barriers to scaling up solutions.

This innovative financial solution addresses the impact of climate change on rural women and households.

Grameen CEO, Zubaida Bai Interview with Lissa Harris

"Working with local organizations is a core part of building ecosystems. We don't necessarily want to create our own office and be there, but we want to build the capacity of local organizations to deliver the content and build ecosystems, so even when we leave the country or the community, the local organizations become the stewards, and the champions for sustainable post-project success. It survives long after we are gone.

When we say we create ecosystems, we start with household dialogues. In many cases, we enable local partners to have household dialogues, where we dismantle gender and power dynamics at the household level. What happens when a woman starts earning equal to or more than a man? That can lead to gender-based violence. What happens if a woman is capable of making $20, but she can only make $2, because her husband only makes $3? How do you create those household dialogues and dismantle gender and power dynamics?

We work with communities too, with the same gender and power dynamics training program. We work with financial institutions, where we primarily create new loan products. We bring in digital technology and open-source technologies which can help them understand the last mile better. The reduction in interest rates directly passes on. We help create new loan products for a population that banks or financial institutions will never serve, and we help bring down interest rates in a meaningful way, so that people don't remain stuck in poverty but are able to use their earnings to actually come out of poverty." - Zubaida Bai (excerpt from interview)

Grameen Foundation Featured in FinDev Gateway's Top 10 Blogs

In 2023, more than 50 community members from MFIs to global policymakers contributed to the FinDev Blog to share their ideas and lessons learned on a wide range of topics related to financial inclusion.

We heard from microfinance practitioners about their work transforming gender norms in Pakistan, designing financial solutions for women smallholders in sub-Saharan Africa and improving land ownership for cocoa farmers in Cote d'Ivoire. We learned from Central Bank directors on their experiences with chatbots and other consumer protection measures in the Philippines, and with advancing women's financial inclusion in Nigeria and much more.

Grameen Foundation recommends strategies for how microlending organizations can address the gender gap and help alleviate global poverty

Authored by Grameen Foundation CEO and President Zubaida Bai and Gigi Gatti
Senior Director Program Strategy and Learning, the article discusses patriarchal policies, intractable risk formulas and the high interest rates that many financial services providers use to limit women entrepreneurs from accessing credit. Grameen Foundation shares holistic solutions that dismantle gender bias and how microlending can enable financial service providers to create win/win scenarios for their organizations and women entrepreneurs.

Grameen Foundation India Identifies Four Strategies to Help Overcome Obstacles in Onboarding Female Agents

Grameen Foundation India, supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, implemented the BEADS (Business Correspondent Network Manager Experiment and Demonstrating Scale) project from 2021-2023 to enhance agent viability and women's participation in agent networks. Authored by Anusha Jain (Program Manager) and Rahul R. Sinha (Associate Director of the Client Insights and Impact (CII)) at Grameen Foundation India. The article identifies four strategies to help overcome the obstacles in onboarding female agents.

Multiple research studies conducted worldwide have confirmed the essential role of women agents in advancing the cause of financial inclusion and fostering business growth for financial service providers (FSPs).

FPO skilling project bags $2 mn grant from Walmart Foundation

Grameen Foundation said it is launching the second phase of its Market Access eNabled by Digital Innovation in India (MANDI-II) project, funded by a $2-million grant from Walmart Foundation.

MANDI-II will aim to address challenges faced by smallholder farmers, especially women, in eastern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal by building the capacities of farmer producer organisations (FPOs).

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar to inaugurate the organized National Conclave on ensuring market access for small farmers

Grameen Foundation India, in collaboration with Walmart Foundation, is organizing a national conference on market access for small farmers on May 23, 2023, at Hyatt Regency in Bhikaji Cama Place, New Delhi, from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM. The objective of the conclave is to address the challenges faced by small farmers in the agricultural sector of India. The inauguration of this conference will be done by the Chief Guest, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Cabinet Minister of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, Government of India. Additionally, Professor Ramesh Chand, Member of NITI Aayog, and Shri Manoj Ahuja (IAS), Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, Government of India, will also enlighten the farmers through this conference.

How Grameen is improving FPO marketing opportunities in India

Grameen Foundation India, with assistance from UPPRO, successfully organized a Buyer-Seller meet in Lucknow . The aim of this event was to strengthen marketing opportunities for 100-plus Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) covering 58,000 small and marginal farmers in 28 districts of Uttar Pradesh, with the support of renowned donor such as the Walmart Foundation.

New Grameen Program to Boost Philippines Coconut Farmers' Livelihoods

Grameen Foundation—in partnership with Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products—has launched a five year program in the Davao region of the Philippines that is designed to improve 25,000 smallholder farmers’ copra production and incomes and connect them to markets, while ensuring positive social and environmental impacts.

Grameen Foundation’s program improves livelihoods of 25,000 coconut farmers; helps in fight against climate change

Grameen Foundation in partnership with Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, has launched a five-year program in the Davao region of the Philippines that is designed to improve 25,000 smallholder farmers’ copra production and incomes and connect them to markets, while ensuring positive social and environmental impacts. The “Sustainable Coconut Project” is funded byBarry Callebaut, in support of its Sustainable Coconut Oil Strategy and the Sustainable Coconut Oil Charter.

Grameen program to improve livelihoods of coco farmers

Grameen Foundation in partnership with Barry Callebaut, the world's leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, has launched a five-year program in the Davao Region designed to improve 25,000 smallholder farmers' copra production and incomes and connect them to markets, while ensuring positive social and environmental impacts.

Workshop on Increasing Cultivation and Consumption of Biofortified Crops through a Partnership-Based Integration System

Grameen Foundation India (GFI), together with Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and HarvestPlus hosted a one-day workshop on the "Scaling up Biofortified Crop through System Integration" in Lucknow on Wednesday, 9 November 2022.

What was billed as a workshop widened to a lively interactive session in which the participants were government officials, representatives of farmer-producer organizations and civil society members apart from GFI and its partners.

How can solar energy help developing countries?

The Solar Village is a project that provides solar-powered homes and businesses to a village in India. The Solar Village was created by the Grameen Foundation, and it is funded by donations. The Solar Village contains a solar panel, a battery, and two light bulbs. It also has a water purification system, a medical clinic, and a school. The Solar Village is designed to be self-sufficient, and it is powered by renewable energy.

U.S., Taiwan to cooperate on empowering women in Pacific island nations

The United States and Taiwan have launched a program aimed at enhancing the economic prospects of women in four Pacific island nations -- Palau, Nauru, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands -- which have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the U.S. Department of State announced on Friday.

According to a statement, the State Department and Taiwan have teamed up with the Grameen Foundation to launch the Building Economic Inclusion via the Blue Economy (BELUU) program under the auspices of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representation Office (TECRO) in the U.S.

Blockchain’s potential extends to poverty busting

Grameen Foundation offered blockchain-enabled micro-financing to support women entrepreneurs in the Philippines during COVID-19.

Taiwan, US launch project to aid women in Pacific

Taiwan and the US have launched a program aimed at enhancing the economic prospects of women in Taiwan’s four diplomatic allies in the Pacific region — Palau, Nauru, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands, the US Department of State announced on Friday.

Taiwan and the State Department teamed up with the Grameen Foundation to launch the Building Economic Inclusion via the Blue Economy (BELUU) program under the auspices of the two countries’ de facto embassies, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representation Office (TECRO).

Grameen Foundation gets first female, Indian American CEO

During her career, Bai has spent time in the poorest places in the world, co-creating products, and services for the betterment of lives.

Grameen Foundation Names First Woman Leader; GlobalGiving Taps New CEO From Gates Foundation

Zubaida Bai will be the next president and CEO of the Grameen Foundation. She is the first woman and the first Indian American to lead the microfinance organization.

Grameen Foundation names Zubaida Bai President and CEO: Bai and new board members to lead Grameen Foundation into its second quarter-century

Grameen Foundation, a leader in providing access to information and resources with a mission to create a world without poverty and hunger, today announced Zubaida Bai as its next President and CEO. She is the first woman and the first Indian American to lead the organization.

Building Economic Inclusion via the Blue Economy Program

The U.S. Department of State and Taiwan, under the auspices of the American Institute in Taiwan and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representation Office in the United States, are proud to partner with the Grameen Foundation to launch the Building Economic Inclusion via the Blue Economy (BELUU) program, a three-year effort to enhance women’s ability to thrive via a more connected business environment, demonstrating the benefits of inclusive development, women’s economic empowerment, and democratic values that foster participation from all. The program will focus on the power of the blue and green economies to increase the market participation of women entrepreneurs in the island nations of Palau, Nauru, Tuvalu, and the Republic of Marshall Islands.

USAID Announces Nine Winners of Regional MujerProspera Challenge to Advance Women's Economic Security

Today, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Hub announced $5 million in funding for awards and technical assistance to nine winners of the MujerProspera (WomanProsper) Challenge, a regional challenge to advance gender equality in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras through women’s economic security, employment, and entrepreneurship. The challenge advances the Biden-Harris Administration’s strategy to address the root causes of irregular migration from Central America. It was first announced by USAID Administrator Samantha Power during her trip to El Salvador in June 2021.

In Honduras, Grameen Foundation will engage 200 food insecure women and their partners in Indigenous and Afro-descendent communities to shift gender norms and power dynamics through a proven approach of engaging spouses and partners to champion women’s business models, growth, and resilience. Through intrahousehold dialogues, this effort will enhance women’s access to credit and financial services, promoting more equitable sharing of household responsibilities.

Walmart Foundation announces agriculture grant

The Walmart Foundation on Wednesday announced a grant of over ₹4 crore to assist farmers across six States in India to manage supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic as well as sustain their farming operations. The grant will be presented to the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and its partner organisations that are supporting their local communities as they respond to COVID-19.

With this new grant, ICRISAT will partner with eight other organisations, including Tanager, Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN), TrickleUp, International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC), Grameen Foundation India, Digital Green India, TechnoServe and Heifer International, to further scale up their efforts on the ground towards building support and resilience for India’s farmers.

HarvestPlus partners with Grameen Foundation India to empower women through Inclusive Agriculture Approach

New Delhi [India], February 17 (ANI/NewsVoir): HarvestPlus and Grameen Foundation India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to increase food, nutrition, and livelihoods security through the production, consumption, and marketing of conventionally bred biofortified crops in India.

Data-driven solutions for more inclusive value chains

How can we redesign global supply chains to make them more resilient and inclusive? In our final Trace Talk of the year we discussed the main challenges preventing smallholder farmers to thrive in global markets, as well as practical data-driven solutions to overcome them. Chrissy Martin Meier from Swiss Capacity Building Facility, Alfred Yeboah from the Grameen Foundation, Ella Moffat from HERproject and Derek Hardwick from Fairfood were on board for this future-oriented talk.

HarvestPlus, Grameen Foundation India partner to empower women through inclusive agriculture approach

The collaboration will focus on health and nutrition initiatives, along with financial inclusion and agriculture-based livelihoods, to enable vulnerable populations (especially women) to overcome poverty and hidden hunger.

HarvestPlus and Grameen Foundation India have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase food, nutrition, and livelihoods security through the production, consumption, and marketing of conventionally bred biofortified crops in India.

'As a country, we need to protect the poor and disadvantaged'

"Grameen Foundation India has been operational in India for over 11 years. In these years we have directly impacted over 1.5 million people. Besides digital finance, we also expanded in the domains of agriculture, health and nutrition, and empowerment of women entrepreneurs," Grameen Foundation India CEO Prabhat Labh told BizzBuzz News. "Through our Grameen Mittra program, we have created self-employment for over 1,000 women entrepreneurs, who bring multiple financial and non-financial products and services to the rural communities in the states of Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar.”

How charities use tech to tackle the world's biggest problems

Grameen Foundation improves crops in developing countries with text messages
Digital farming is the way of the future to ensure farmers yield a good crop. Using texts, voice messages and call-in radio, Grameen Foundation alerts farmers of weather forecasts, pest prevention, farming tips and development plans so they can improve how they provide for themselves and their families.

Grameen Foundation India Launches Tech4Inclusion Challenge for Tech Startups

An initiative to leverage augmented reality technology to drive financial inclusion New Delhi, Delhi, India (NewsVoir) Grameen Foundation India (GFI) recently launched the challenge for augmented reality-based solutions to advance financial literacy and inclusion. The challenge invites technology startups working on cutting edge augmented reality/virtual reality technologies and encourages them to come up with innovative solutions to address the challenges in advancing digital and financial inclusion of low-income people, particularly women.

NGO trains women in Northern, Upper East Regions in mobile money operation

An NGO, Grameen Foundation is partnering with three civil society organisations in the Northern and Upper East Regions to establish 90 female mobile money vendors as part of their employment programme.

The beneficiaries are expected to also serve as business advisers to other women in their communities. The initiative will also train these women to serve as gender-based violence report support agents.

Grameen Foundation to train Female Mobile Money agents to provide Gender Based Violence support

Speaking at the launch of the key findings of “WE GAIN’s WEE” Barriers and Opportunities Assessment, (an assessment made on the intended program before it commences) with key stakeholders in Tamale, the Regional Director for Grameen Foundation Africa, Alfred Yeboah indicated that the cost of training and setting up these female agents would be fully absorbed by the foundation.

“The project will provide start-up capital for them, train them and provide them all the support they need to succeed as Mobile Money agents who are also able to accrue profit from their business, then we can also use them as change agents when it comes to gender based violence awareness creation in their communities."

Grameen Foundation Launches Blockchain-Enabled Cash Support and Training Program to Help 800 Filipino Workers Hit Hardest by COVID-19

Grameen Foundation announced the launch of an innovative program in the Philippines that leverages blockchain technology to provide capital support to microentrepreneurs challenged by the impact of the COVID-19. Supported by Celo, the “Social Dividend Campaign” targets repatriated Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who lost their jobs and income due to the pandemic.

Celo, Grameen Foundation, Collaborate Anew For Blockchain-Enabled Support to 800 Filipino Workers

Global non-profit organization Grameen Foundation announced a new initiative that utilizes blockchain to provide capital support to micro entrepreneurs who are facing challenges because of the pandemic. This project, the “Social Dividend Campaign,” is in collaboration with Celo and is poised to help repatriated Overseas Filipino Workers who have lost their jobs and income.

Grameen Brings Relief, Recovery To 3,500 Entrepreneurs Amid Pandemic

Grameen Foundation has announced the results of its Covid-19 RELIEF (Response to Enhance Livelihoods of Individual Entrepreneurs and Families) initiative in the Philippines. Supported by J.P. Morgan, the two-phase program targeted individual microentrepreneurs or daily wage earners, especially women, who were severely affected by community lockdowns imposed in Metro Manila and Cebu.

Digital advisory services for smallholder families in Africa and Asia

The project "Agripath" is blazing new trails: "The goal of the project is to develop effective, efficient, and far-reaching advisory services that engage as many smallholder families as possible, particularly incorporating women and young people," says Sonja Vogt, Professor of Sustainable Social Development at the University of Bern: "To achieve that goal, we are developing technical innovations that foster changes in people's attitudes and social norms related to agriculture."

Grameen, J.P. Morgan aid 3,400 local entrepreneurs

Grameen Foundation on Friday announced the results of its COVID-19 RELIEF (Response to Enhance Livelihoods of Individual Entrepreneurs and Families) initiative in the Philippines.

Drawing on its Resilient Life, Resilient Business (RLRB) curriculum, Grameen designed learning modules to support women entrepreneurs holistically by addressing gender roles and the constant threat of shocks and stresses they face, and by providing them with tools to thrive as microentrepreneurs in an ever-changing environment.

Grameen Foundation program for microentrepreneurs

Grameen Foundation shared the results of COVID-19 RELIEF (Response to Enhance Livelihoods of Individual Entrepreneurs and Families) initiative in the Philippines.

Supported by J.P. Morgan, the two-phase program targeted individual microentrepreneurs severely affected by community lockdowns imposed in Metro Manila and Cebu.

Grameen, J.P. Morgan aid 3,400 local entrepreneurs

Grameen Foundation on Friday announced the results of its COVID-19 RELIEF (Response to Enhance Livelihoods of Individual Entrepreneurs and Families) initiative in the Philippines. Supported by J.P. Morgan, the two-phase program targeted individual microentrepreneurs or daily wage earners, especially women, who were severely affected by community lockdowns imposed in Metro Manila and Cebu.

How the Grameen Foundation Successfully Delivered Humanitarian Aid to 3,500 Micro Entrepreneurs Using Celo’s Blockchain

In June 2020, Grameen Foundation a global nonprofit whose mission is to enable the poor to create a world without poverty and hunger, launched a project to help women micro entrepreneurs provide for their families with an emergency cash relief program.

Working with local microfinance institutions, Grameen identified 3,500 women in Manila and Cebu to receive immediate relief support by providing digital access to grocery and medical packages and vouchers for their household needs and business sustainability. However, delivering aid in an expeditious and safe manner is difficult given the strict mobility restrictions in the cities and the danger of COVID infection. And Grameen wanted to take a long-term approach.

United States Provides Assistance to Bolster Women’s Economic Opportunities

U.S. Ambassador Lisa Peterson is pleased to announce that the United States is providing Eswatini $1 million in financial assistance to bolster women’s economic opportunities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The assistance will pay for a three-year Women’s Employment for Economic Recovery project, which aims to address legal and cultural barriers to women’s economic participation, give them better access to credit and financial services, and develop male allies to champion and help sustain these reforms. The goal of the project is to provide tools and resources that will empower more women to participate meaningfully in the economy.

Funding for the project comes from USAID’s Women’s Global Development Program (W-GDP), and it will be implemented by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA-ROLI) and its core partner the Grameen Foundation.

How Grameen Mittras in Maharashtra's Bhandara are Leading the Battle Against Covid-19 Crisis

Recruited, trained and supervised by Grameen Foundation India (GFI), Grameen Mittras are social entrepreneurs, providing a range of valuable financial and non-financial services to the community.

The Power of Local Women: An Innovative Social Capital Model Addresses Rural Financial Inclusion in India During COVID-19

Grameen Foundation's innovative Mittra Model is featured in Next Billion's series, "Enterprise in the Time of Coronavirus."

A Social Algorithm Tool Gives Covid-19 Relief To India’s Informal Sector

Social algorithm tools like Grameen4Giving can ensure emergency relief reaches those in the informal sector who are the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grameen, J.P. Morgan partner in COVID response

'J.P. Morgan understood early that relief and recovery of individual entrepreneurs, especially women, would be a critical step to ensuring the economic resilience of the Philippines in this time of crisis, and we are proud to partner with them on this important initiative.'

Grameen Foundation, J.P. Morgan Deliver COVID-19 Relief to Filipina Entrepreneurs

Program supported by J.P. Morgan will target vulnerable individual female microentrepreneurs and their families located in Metro Manila and Cebu City.

JP Morgan grants P33 million to foundation to help women microentrepreneurs in Philippines

Global financial services company JP Morgan Chase is giving $650,000 or around P33 million to international nonprofit Grameen Foundation to help 3,500 women running microenterprises in the Philippines whose livelihoods were affected by the COVID-19 crisis

Helping Hands for Women Entrepreneurs

Grameen Foundation, supported by J.P. Morgan, launched COVID-19 RELIEF to provide immediate relief and longer-term recovery support to 3,500 women entrepreneurs running microenterprises.

Decoding the Future of Jobs in India

India is facing declining employment due to lack of new opportunity and education deficits. Prabhat Labh, CEO of Grameen Foundation India and Sourajit Aiyer, author and communication consultant, discuss the challenges and potential solutions.

Data-Driven Agriculture: supplementing precision agriculture with big data

Data-Driven Agriculture uses big data to supplement on-farm precision agriculture – using the right farm data, at the right time and in the right formats to make better decisions.

Bridging the gender gap: Fintech as a means to empower women

A study by the Grameen Foundation India reveals the life-changing impact of financial inclusion and digital solutions on people previously "locked out" of formal financing institutions.

Corporates can remodel business into a force for good – here's how

Daniel Nowack – managing director at Yunus Social Business discusses how, with a mix of social intrapreneurship, corporate partnerships with social businesses and a new era of corporate social investment, businesses can be turned into a force for good.

World Changing Ideas 2019: All the winners, finalists, and honorable mentions

Fast Company‘s third annual World Changing Ideas Awards drew nearly 2,000 submissions across 17 categories. Grameen's Emotional Analytics for Social Enterprises and the Grameen Guru, Accenture Labs India won Honorable Mention.

‘We have to bring the digital data revolution to the farmers growing coffee and cocoa’

Together with Grameen Foundation, Mars, Inc and other partners, Rainforest Alliance launched the SAT4Farming programme, an initiative to reach thousands of small-scale cocoa producers with information and services to improve their productivity and sustainability. It is designed to use digital technology and satellite imagery to create individual Farm Development Plans (FDPs), which will guide Ghanaian cocoa farmers over a seven-year period.

Acumen, Patni scions-backed Grameen Impact offer credit to skill development firms

Grameen Impact Investments India and Acumen India have launched a $1.4 million bond focused on sustainable development goals that will provide credit to for-profit enterprises targeting skill development in India.

Smart Farming Through The Internet Of Things

Tony Franklin, General Manager for the Internet of Things at Intel talks about what is happening in the extremely powerful IoT space. One issue he sees is the 500 million smallholder farmers who produce much of the world's food supply but lack access to the Internet. That's why, ten years ago, Intel and Grameen Foundation formed the Technology for Social Impact partnership.

The role of anthropology and technology in the Ebola vaccine response

Throughout the Ebola vaccine trials in Sierra Leone, collaboration was essential between anthropologists, communities and managing the clinical vaccine trials. The purpose of the EBODAC (Ebola Vaccine Deployment, Acceptance, and Compliance) Consortium – a partnership that includes the Grameen Foundation – was to develop community engagement strategies to manage rumors and build trust, and particularly to ensure vaccine compliance. Another important objective: prepare for future vaccine deployment by strengthening communities and health systems to be better prepared and respond to future outbreaks.

Transforming Food Systems for Resilience in Africa & Asia

As part of a series of opinion pieces to mark World Food Day, October 16, this article by Nathanial Matthews and Deon Nel highlights FarmerLink’s mobile-based advisory service in the Philippines.

Re-energizing agriculture through digital transformation

The Manila Times cites Grameen Foundation’s FarmerLink program as an example of digital transformations that are benefiting farmers in the Philippines.

Growth of agritech calls for rapid policy response

Grameen Foundation program manager Alfred Kofo Yeboah calls on Africa’s emerging agritech sector to support policies and institutions that protect farmers’ privacy and data rights.

Tech apps to financially empower women

Sanjay Podder, managing director of Accenture Labs India, explains his company’s collaboration with Grameen Foundation to develop AI and augmented reality tools to help increase the adoption of financial services among low-income women.

Ghana: Digital Satellite Tech Supports Ghana Cocoa Farmers

All Africa profiles SAT4FArming, a digital and satellite technology program launched by Grameen Foundation and partners to support Ghana’s smallholder cocoa farmers.

Paytm AshaKiran Partners with Grameen Foundation to Promote Self-Employment in Rural India

Through this partnership, Paytm and Grameen Foundation for Social Impact will provide job-oriented training to rural women and youth to help increase financial literacy and inclusion.

Boosting financial inclusion in developing nations—an AI/AR use case

Prabhat Labh of Grameen Foundation India discusses their use of digital technology, such as Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality, to expand financial inclusion in India. Watch the video.

To make digital financial inclusion a reality, let women help other women

Grameen Foundation’s Lauren Hendricks and Gigi Gatti discuss the importance of female agents in encouraging other women to adopt digital financial services.

New Index Measures Empowerment & Inclusion of Women in Agriculture

Grameen Foundation is a project partner in the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index program led by the International Food Policy Research Institute, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative.

Being Smart About Mobile Money

Grameen Foundation’s Bobbi Gray and Christian Loupeda discuss the valuable role of savings groups in extending digital financial services to underserved communities in Burkina Faso.

Building productivity and resilience for coconut farmers through digital technology

Grameen Foundation’s FarmerLink program in the Philippines is featured as one of the FAO’s e-Agriculture promising practices for its use of satellite data, farm data and mobile-equipped field agents to help small-scale coconut farmers improve their productivity and incomes.

Local fintech, Grameen Foundation use technology to empower the poor

Grameen Foundation’s CAN program in expanding access to financial services in the Philippines.

Serving Smallholder Farmers in the Digital Age: Why it Requires Treating Data Like an Asset

In this joint op-ed, Grameen Foundation’s Bobbi Gray and FHI 360’s Ellen Galdava discuss how data-driven agriculture can improve the lives of smallholders farmers.

Sari-sari stores level up with digital transformation

Gigi Gatti explains how Grameen Foundation works with neighborhood shops and telecom operators in the Philippines to extend financial services to underserved communities.