Francis Enimil Ashun

Poverty Alleviation and Microfinance in the Fishing Villages of Ghana Francis Enimil Ashun

Micro finance and poverty alleviation have become bedfellows in the quest to help the rural poor to lift themselves from their abject poverty to a state of relative wellbeing. Microfinance intermediation has been identified by the United Nations and other development partners as a most effective vehicle in moving the poor from their abject poverty to a state of relative wellbeing. It is in this view that the author has delved into micro finance operations to bring to the fore its successes and challenges with bid to helping to improve its outlook. Microfinance seeks to alleviate poverty one person at a time. ?When we want to help the poor, we usually offer them charity. Most often we use charity to avoid recognizing the problem and finding the solution for it. Charity becomes a way to shrug off our responsibility. But charity is no solution to poverty. Charity only perpetuates poverty by taking the initiative away from the poor. Charity allows us to go ahead with our own lives without worrying about the lives of the poor. Charity appeases our consciences.? ? Muhammad Yunus, Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty