Have You Heard About Microsavings to Help the Poor?

NY Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof, wrote about microsavings in one of his recent columns. He says, “One of the ugly secrets of global poverty is that a good deal of suffering is caused not only by low incomes but also by bad spending decisions. Research suggests that the world’s poorest families (typically the men in those families) spend about 20% of their incomes on a combination of alcohol, cigarettes, prostitution, soft drinks and extravagant festivals.”

Kristof goes on to say that those men don’t have a secure way to save money and neither do poor people in general.

In Kenya, two economists paid the fees to open small bank accounts for peddlers. Within six months, the women peddlers invested 40% more in their businesses, mostly buying more goods to be resold.

Kristof concludes, “The world’s poor might benefit hugely from the ability to bank their money safely.” Check out www.matchsavings.org to learn more.