“A better world starts with imagination”

July 11, 2009 – Nobel laureate and Grameen Bank founder Professor Muhammad Yunus addressed students at the CIDA City Campus in Johannesburg yesterday on the success of the Grameen Bank model and the power that each individual has to effect similar change in the world.

Prof Yunus was welcomed by Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana, Executive Chair of CIDA City Campus board, and Dr Mothomang Diaho, Head of the Dialogue for Justice Programme at the Nelson Mandela Foundation, who reminded the audience that “today is about inspiration”.

Chantal Cuddumbey, 46664 Communications Manager, added to that inspiration by telling the students about Mandela Day on July 18, 2009 – a global call for action, asking people to follow in Mr Mandela’s footsteps and go out into their communities to do good.

“Professor Yunus exemplifies what we mean here – that an individual, through small actions, can transform society,” she said.

“Well, I’m inspired,” said Prof Yunus as he stepped up to address the audience, “by seeing everyone together here and by the Mandela Day announcement. Mr Mandela is an icon for the whole world. He dedicated his whole life to the cause of other people, and if we can’t dedicate one day or even a few moments of our lives to helping others, we should be ashamed,” he said.

Prof Yunus encouraged everyone present to take whatever they have in themselves and use it to make a change in other people’s lives.

“It doesn’t have to be the whole world,” he continued. “Bring it down to bite-size – do something for one person. This is the most exciting thing, because all you have to do is repeat it.”

It is this philosophy upon which Prof Yunus built the Grameen Bank model. Frustrated by the famine and suffering in Bangladesh in 1974, he decided, instead of sitting around and blaming the government, he would go out and do something.

“I thought, ‘I can’t solve the whole country’s problems, but I can reach out to one person each day’,” he said.  And that’s how it started.

People in his community needed USD27 to pay back loan sharks. It was not a large amount and he didn’t have to consult anyone in order to do it – so he did.

“I saw the excitement it generated,” he said. “People looked at me as if I’d descended from heaven. I became an angel for USD27, and I thought, if I give again, I’ll be a super-angel.”

Having taken the first step in his journey, the next question was how to formalise the process of lending money to poor people who did not qualify for bank loans. Prof Yunus went to the bank with his grand idea, thinking that they would jump at it. Instead, they laughed at him.

His next idea was to act as a guarantor for those who wanted small loans from the bank. It took him two months to persuade the bank to allow him to do so, but he did, and it was successful – “every penny was paid back”.

The point that Prof Yunus emphasised with this story of the very beginnings of the Grameen Bank microfinance model is that “you don’t have to know everything to do things. I still don’t know anything about banks and I run one,” he said.

Putting it in terms his audience could easily relate to, Prof Yunus told them of the importance of following a right feeling and not being daunted by other people’s scepticism.

“It’s not like grading in school. In life, you are the only one who grades yourself,” he said.

He went on to say that it is important to feel that you want to change things, to do things differently. “The more people say it’s crazy, the more you’re on the right track. If they say that you’re stupid, then you’re definitely hitting the point,” he said.

“You don’t have to know everything. It’s your intention which is important,” he added. However, it is important to have an objective in mind too.

“You can’t create in a vacuum. You must have an image in your mind,” he said.

“I want to create a poverty-free world. It sounds crazy, but I feel confident that it will happen,” he added.

The reason Prof Yunus is so sure of this is that he believes poverty is not an inherent part of the human make-up – it is a condition imposed from the outside.

If a child is born on the street and a child is born in a palace, there is no difference in their potential, he believes. If this is the case, then our job is simple – we just have to fix the system.

After Prof Yunus’s inspiring words, three young people spoke of the ways in which they have helped their communities. Dumisani Dladla, a CIDA alumnus, spoke of his struggle to obtain an education and of how he went back to his community and taught computer and entrepreneurship skills to underprivileged children.

Lerato Mokhatla from TEACH SA spoke of following her passion and becoming a mathematics educator, even though people told her she was crazy. She is inspired by seeing the impact that she has on the children she teaches and the difference that she makes in their lives.

Ayanda Gamedze, a school learner, echoed Prof Yunus’s inspiring words as she spoke of the importance of following your instincts and living out your passion. “People may judge you, but at least you’re going with your instinct, with what you believe in,” she said.

In the second session of the day, the audience was asked to divide into groups and develop a wish list for the dream world that they would like to achieve by 2050. They were then asked what they were doing to make this happen.

Prof Yunus moved between the groups, listening to the discussions and engaging with the students.

In the feedback session, it was clear that most groups wanted access to quality education and healthcare, a world with no racism or discrimination, and to eradicate poverty and crime. Popular items on many wish lists were job creation, an end to corruption and nepotism, and a war-free world. Other suggestions were to create a culture that wants to give back, to change people’s mindsets and to create a society that upholds morals and values.

Ideas for achieving this wish list included taking one small step at a time and being accountable.

“Imagine if we could dream without inhibition, how great the world would be,” one group said.

In closing, Prof Yunus encouraged the audience to draw up their own wish list and to use it as a guide in pursuing their dreams.

“This is just a dream. Reality begins when you go home. Draw up your wish list, believe in it. Build something and push yourself to get there. With ambition and imagination, anything is

possible. If you want it, it will happen. It’s as simple as that,” he said.

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