Microfinance and Social Business: the roots of a global revolution

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The Yunus Social Business Centre – Università Ca’ Foscari of Venice has been active since April 2020 within the Economics Campus of the Venetian university. Through research and consultancy activities, it aims to disseminate the principles and theories of social business based on the teachings of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus. It is accredited by the Yunus Centre in Dhaka (Bangladesh) and is part of a network of centres located around the world.

 

The story of microfinance is one of revolution. And as has often happened in the history of revolutions, microfinance too, once triggered, exploded from the bottom up, involving the most disadvantaged strata of society on the front lines.

But it is also a story of applied research, breaking away from mainstream economic scenarios and disciplines. Modern microfinance was born far from the West, in Bangladesh, through the initiative of Muhammad Yunus, Professor of Economics at the University of Chittagong. In the wake of the great Bangladesh famine of 1974, Yunus began to question the economic theories he taught to his students. He wanted to understand why the models that extol development and shared prosperity in university textbooks were so distant from the reality of his country: outside the university classrooms of Chittagong and throughout the rest of Bangladesh, a widespread presence of people in poverty, relegated to the margins of society, still persisted. Thus, he ventured into the field, to the outskirts of the city, to study the dramatic conditions of millions of his fellow citizens. He experienced firsthand the material shortages in rural areas, the misery of village life. That is how he identified the recurrence of a vicious circle: the lack of ownership of the means of artisanal production by workers – if only the raw material – led them to resort to prohibitive loans, offered directly by retailers or usurers. Yunus then decided to activate a system of small loans – microfinance, precisely – especially to women, to break this oppressive debt cycle. Professor Yunus himself issued the first loans, and microfinance so became a story of revenge for thousands of families. Following the enormous success of this model, he decided to structure this credit modality in what in Bangladeshi means village bank, the Grameen Bank.

But first and foremost, microfinance is a story of emancipation, empowerment and capability. Though without any kind of asset guarantee, and without any obligation to repay the loan, the Grameen Bank’s clients recorded very high repayment rates. This is the greatest revolution of microfinance: the generation of trust. Loan repayment is indeed perceived as a matter of honour, responsibility and respect. It becomes an empowerment tool with women who, seizing the opportunity of the microfinance to emancipate themselves, recorded the highest repayment rates, astonishing the Grameen Bank operators as well.

The echoes of Yunus’ teachings still resound around the world today. If, with microfinance, which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006, Yunus launched an initial challenge to poverty and global capitalism, the Bangladeshi professor furthered his efforts with the conceptualisation of Social Business, an alternative business paradigm to the dominant capitalist model, traditionally extractivist and oriented towards the maximisation and multiplication of profit at the expense of social and environmental implications. The declared and pursued goal of Social Business is the creation of shared social value through the resolution of one or more socio-environmental problems of general interest. Although, in terms of raison d’être and pursued objectives, business models akin to this paradigm have existed and still exist – consider, for instance, of the Italian cooperative movement – Muhammad Yunus has popularised the concept of Social Business on a global scale.

Paraphrasing his words, Social Business is a fully-fledged, financially sustainable and autonomous enterprise that operates to achieve a specific social goal. A Social Business does not generate losses, nor does it distribute dividends, and it is managed and controlled by altruistically motivated private investors. Social Businesses mainly operate in the fields of poverty reduction, social justice promotion, and environmental sustainability on a global scale. The mechanisms that regulate its activities are those pertaining to the classical market. Any profits generated are to be reinvested in the business in order to expand its impact, through the improvement of the product/service offered or the creation of other Social Businesses that can help address additional socio-environmental issues. In other words, the foundations of Social Business lie in combining the most virtuous market dynamics with the responsibility and awareness of innovators ready to revolutionise the rules of the game and place the well-being of both people and the planet at the centre of the enterprise’s interests. Profit thus becomes a means, and no longer the goal. We could envisage Social Business as the fusion of the socio-environmental objectives typical of the public and nonprofit sectors with the efficiency and organisational effectiveness of the private sector. In a contemporary scenario characterised by multifaceted crises, largely caused by anthropic actions and by intrinsically unsustainable and exclusionary business models, Social Business and the social entrepreneurs who promote it emerge as a catalysing and generative force for positive impact. It is indeed difficult to imagine that business-as-usual corporations, owned by shareholders oriented towards maximising their short-term investments, would constitute an economy capable of facing the challenges of the millennium – ever increasing poverty, inequalities, climate and biodiversity crises, among others.

The framework outlined by the Sustainable Development Goals enshrined in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda, agreed upon in 2015, offers an integrated platform useful for guiding and shaping the impact of Social Business on many different frontlines and challenges. By acting on specific goals and sub-goals, social entrepreneurs become agents of systemic change: through their social innovations, they can trigger transition mechanisms towards more sustainable and responsible economic, cultural, and social paradigms. In the broad panorama of global challenges, few initiatives can boast the scope and ambition as this Agenda. It is a manifesto of hope, a collective commitment to embrace fundamental values such as universal respect and equality, human dignity, and environmental sustainability. With the unanimous endorsement of the 193 UN member countries, this ambitious plan aims to revolutionise the world by 2030, by addressing complex and interconnected issues. But what makes the 2030 Agenda so outstanding is its inclusiveness. Unlike the Millennium Development Goals, each and every individual and sector is here being represented and called upon to contribute to change. Even some fringes of the private sector have embraced this mission, implementing forms of Social Business that have qualified companies as highly strategic partners for the nonprofit and institutional world in the journey towards a better future.

Success stories are plentiful. From the We Collect company, originating from the Zero Waste Laos movement, where young activists flank local governments and companies in processes of environmental sustainability, to the Nai Nami agency in Kenya, which offers opportunities to street youths as tour guides in Nairobi, the world teems with enlightening examples. In Italy, from North to South, organisations such as Libera Terra and Rifò are committed to regenerating soil and clothing free from human exploitation, while social cooperatives such as Malefatte and Made in Carcere, the micro-bakery Frolla, and the Artismo atelier are demonstrating that ethical entrepreneurship can regenerate not only objects but also people’s lives, whether they are in detention, marginalised, or persons with disabilities.

Given the world population approaching eight billion people, change calls for a massive but not impossible commitment, if supported by the contribution of each and every one of us, starting with everyday choices: resources and guidelines for acting consciously range from Parents for Future’s advice on which energy supplier to choose or which ethical funds to invest in, to the careful selection of products suggested by Altroconsumo or the Yuka app, taking inspiration from Social Business for a future capable of placing respect for humanity and the environment at the centre of its actions; a future that can definitively be said to be welcoming and sustainable.

 

Gli echi degli insegnamenti di Yunus risuonano nel mondo intero ancora oggi. Se col microcredito, valsogli il Nobel per la Pace nel 2006, Yunus ha lanciato una prima sfida alla povertà e al capitalismo globale, il professore bangladese ha poi rincarato la dose con la concettualizzazione del Social Business, paradigma d’impresa alternativo a quello capitalistico dominante, tradizionalmente estrattivista e orientato alla massimizzazione e riproduzione del profitto a discapito di implicazioni sociali e ambientali. L’obiettivo dichiarato e perseguito del Social Business è la creazione di valore sociale comune attraverso la risoluzione di uno o più problemi socio-ambientali di interesse generale. Sebbene, per ragion d’essere e finalità perseguite, siano esistiti ed esistano tuttora modelli d’impresa riconducibili a questo paradigma – si pensi, ad esempio, al movimento cooperativista italiano – Muhammad Yunus ha reso popolare il concetto di Social Business a livello mondiale.

Parafrasando le sue parole, il Social Business è un’impresa a tutti gli effetti, f inanziariamente sostenibile e autonoma, che opera per raggiungere un determinato obiettivo sociale. Un Social Business non produce perdite, non distribuisce dividendi ed è gestito e controllato da investitrici e investitori privati mossi da motivazioni altruistiche. I Social Business operano principalmente nel campo della riduzione della povertà, della promozione della giustizia sociale e della sostenibilità ambientale su scala globale. I meccanismi che regolano la sua attività sono quelli del mercato tradizionale. Eventuali profitti generati vanno reinvestiti nel business al fine di espanderne l’impatto, attraverso il miglioramento del prodotto/ servizio offerto, o la creazione di altri Social Business che possano contribuire a mitigare ulteriori problemi socio-ambientali. In altre parole, le fondamenta del Social Business risiedono nella coniugazione delle dinamiche più virtuose del mercato con la responsabilità e la consapevolezza di innovatrici e innovatori pronti a rivoluzionare le regole del gioco e mettere al centro degli interessi dell’impresa il benessere delle persone e del pianeta. Il profitto diventa quindi un mezzo, non più il f ine. Potremmo prospettare il Social Business come la fusione di obiettivi socio ambientali tipici del settore pubblico e del non profit, con l’efficienza e l’efficacia organizzativa del settore privato.
In una contemporaneità caratterizzata da crisi poliedriche, causate in larga parte dall’azione antropica e da modelli di business intrinsecamente insostenibili ed esclusivi, il Social Business e gli imprenditori e imprenditrici sociali che lo promuovono emergono come una forza catalizzatrice e generativa di impatto positivo. È infatti difficile immaginare che siano delle società di capitali business as-usual, possedute da shareholders orientati alla massimizzazione nel breve termine dei loro investimenti, a costituire un’economia che sappia fronteggiare le sfide del millennio – povertà crescente, disuguaglianze, crisi climatica e della biodiversità, tra le altre.

Il framework degli Obiettivi di Sviluppo Sostenibile dell’Agenda 2030 delle Nazioni Unite, concertati nel 2015, offre una piattaforma integrata utile a orientare e declinare l’impatto del Social Business su vari fronti e sfide. Agendo sugli specifici obiettivi e sub-obiettivi, gli imprenditori e le imprenditrici sociali diventano agenti di cambiamento sistemico: con le loro innovazioni sociali, sono in grado di innescare meccanismi di transizione verso paradigmi economici, culturali e sociali più sostenibili e responsabili. Nel vasto panorama delle sfide globali, poche iniziative possono vantare la portata e l’ambizione di questa Agenda. È un manifesto di speranza, un impegno collettivo per abbracciare valori fondamentali come il rispetto e l’uguaglianza universale, la dignità umana e la sostenibilità ambientale. Con la firma unanime dei 193 Paesi membri dell’ONU, questo piano ambizioso si propone di rivoluzionare il mondo entro il 2030, affrontando questioni complesse e interconnesse. Ma a rendere l’Agenda 2030 così straordinaria è la sua inclusività. A differenza degli Obiettivi del Millennio, qui ogni individuo e settore è rappresentato e chiamato a contribuire al cambiamento. Anche alcune frange del settore privato hanno abbracciato questa missione, implementando forme di Social Business che hanno qualificato le aziende come partner altamente strategici per il non profit e il mondo istituzionale nell’iter verso un futuro migliore.

Le storie di successo abbondano. Dall’impresa We Collect, originata dal movimento Zero Waste Laos, in cui giovani attivisti e attiviste accompagnano governi locali e aziende in processi di sostenibilità ambientale, all’agenzia Nai Nami in Kenya che offre opportunità a giovani di strada come guide turistiche a Nairobi, il mondo pullula di esempi illuminanti. In Italia, da Nord a Sud, realtà come Libera Terra e Rifò si impegnano per una rigenerazione di terreni e capi d’abbigliamento liberi dallo sfruttamento delle persone, mentre le cooperative sociali Malefatte e Made in Carcere, il micro-biscottificio Frolla e il laboratorio Artismo dimostrano che l’imprenditoria etica può rigenerare non solo oggetti, ma anche le vite delle persone, siano esse in stato di detenzione, marginalizzate o persone disabili. Con la popolazione mondiale che si avvicina agli otto miliardi di persone, il cambiamento richiede un impegno imponente ma non impossibile, se supportato dal contributo di ciascuna e ciascuno di noi, a cominciare dalle scelte quotidiane: le risorse e le guide per agire consapevolmente vanno dalle indicazioni dei Parents for Future su quale fornitore di energia scegliere o su quali fondi etici investire, alla selezione attenta dei prodotti suggerita da Altroconsumo o dall’app Yuka, prendendo ispirazione dal Social Business per un futuro capace di mettere il rispetto per l’umanità e l’ambiente al centro del suo agire; un futuro che sappia definitivamente farsi accogliente e sostenibile.

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