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My first entry: Microfinance and Medicine
Posted on April 6th, 2005 No commentsI followed up Saturday’s marathon Microfinance with John Hatch workshop with another seminar at the Haas school. Basically, the idea of microfinance is to give out micro loans ($100-$200) to poor women in the developing world in hopes that they will invest and improve their productivity thus raising themselves out of poverty. I feel that there is definitely a very strong connection between medicine here. Those who are poor are often the most susceptible to disease and most incapable of getting adequate healthcare. Wouldn’t it be great to not only treat the sick and poor while also giving them the means to provide for themselves?
Ideally this summer I will get to work with some of these “villagers”. CFHI has asked me to apply for their alumni fellowship which would allow me to spend the summer in Capetown, South Africa assisting the program. If so, my personal goals are to talk to as many poor and sick people as I can to find out what they need. I also believe I will have easy access to MicroFinance Institutions there in addition to HIV/ARV focused clinics.
Sweet, my first entry into my own weblog.
THANKS PHIL!!