Microfinance Initiative at Bucknell (MIB)

During the 2008-2009 school year, MIB grew from a starter organization to a legitimate source of education on campus.  By the end of the year, MIB had accumulated a revolving fund of $2,000 through the help of students, professors, and alumni.  With sturdy financial backing, MIB loaned money to approximately twenty individual entrepreneurs and groups spanning from Africa to North America.  Of all the loans given, only one entrepreneur has defaulted.  In addition to lending money, MIB has devoted much of its time to educating the campus, most recently through a panel discussion entitled, “Microfinance: Developing Paths to Sustainability”, which featured four esteemed Bucknell professors from different fields overlapping in microcredit in the US and abroad.  The panel discussed the pros and cons of microfinance, where it has been most successful and why, and other methods which may be more effective.  Considering 2008-2009 was MIB’s first year up and running, we believe it was a tremendous success, the first of many to follow!