United States

A wide variety of social, historical, cultural, educational and structural factors contribute to the persistence of poverty in the world’s richest nation.

• In the United States, more than 37 million people live below the poverty line
• Approximately 74 percent of poor people in the United States are located in major metropolitan areas

Despite these obstacles, poor people are embracing microentrepreneurship as a pathway out of poverty. In fact, many clients of U.S. microlenders break out of dead-end jobs, unemployment and dependence on public assistance to become successful entrepreneurs, creating jobs for their families and their communities.

Our partner microfinance institution in the United States:

• Project Enterprise, New York City

Learn more about microfinance for low income people in the US in Give Us Credit (Random House, 1996) by Grameen Foundation President and CEO Alex Counts.