Project Dignity is a program through which Grameen Trust intends to help beggars find alternative ways of earning income instead of begging, by providing them interest and collateral free flexible term microcredit. This program has been initiated with an intention to expand and replicate the Grameen Bank's Struggling Members Program that exclusively targets the beggars. It is a holistic approach to fight extreme poverty, as it will help the most vulnerable and marginalized groups of the society gain respect and dignity, through self-employment.
For effective implementation, this program has been designed so that beggars will be motivated to join the program as Grameen Bank members, to make proper use of micro loans. The loan provision has been kept collateral and interest free so that it will not impose any extra burden on the beggars to join the program. Moreover, the members have been provided the flexibility of repaying loans according to their convenience. The members are provided with utility services that they lack most, such as blankets, mosquito nets, umbrellas etc. to lessen their vulnerability. In workshops and centre meetings members are mentored and guided in utilizing the loan effectively and they are provided basic literacy to develop and improve their entrepreneurial skills.
Grameen Trust is implementing the project through six of its partners in Bangladesh namely, CWFD, IDF, DSK, MAMATA, MSS, & PADAKHEP. There are 72 branches of these six organizations which are spread all over Bangladesh. As of August 2006, six partners have reached a total of 342 members disbursing Tk. 2,94,000 (US$ 4273). The members are repaying loans according to their convenience and to date Tk. 30,208 (US$ 439) has been repaid by the members. |
