clipped from: www.accion.org 
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an independent, international organization that strives towards a world-class corporate governance system where values are as important a basis as rules. Their motto is ‘entrepreneurship in the global public interest’. The WEF believes that economic progress without social development is not sustainable, while social development without economic progress is not feasible.
Half the population of the earth, or 3 billion people, lives in extreme poverty. Microfinance offers the working poor the financial tools they need – including loans as low as $100, savings accounts, insurance and business training – to improve their livelihoods. Profits grow, earnings are more secure and the result is a better quality of life for the whole family.