The company helps alleviate poverty in the Arab world through microfinance. Grameen-Jameel has set a goal of reaching one million new active microfinance clients in the Arab world by 2011. In order to achieve this, the company forms strategic partnerships with microfinance institutions (MFIs) throughout the region who share its values: commitment to reaching women and the poorest; aggressive growth plans; and financial sustainability.
Grameen-Jameel provides support to MFIs through its products, services, and financing. This support enables MFIs to increase the breadth and depth of their outreach, as well as strengthen their financial and operational sustainability to better serve their clients. Through its partnerships in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Tunisia, Grameen-Jameel has reached more than 200,000 new microfinance clients.
In addition to partnering with MFIs, Grameen-Jameel works closely with Sanabel, the Arab microfinance network, and Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), a multi-donor consortium housed at the World Bank, to facilitate the spread of information on best practices among microfinance practitioners. The Arabic Microfinance Gateway, the first major online resource for microfinance in the Arab world, is a result of close cooperation between Grameen-Jameel, Sanabel and CGAP.
Our Roots
Grameen-Jameel is the first of its kind to target microfinance in the Arab world in order to address poverty and unemployment, and shows how two very different organizations, a western non-profit organization and a for-profit, privately-held Saudi company can come together to achieve common social good.
Grameen Foundation is a global nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC that combines microfinance, technology, and innovation to empower the world's poorest people to escape poverty. Founded in 1997 with the support of Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, the Foundation has a global network of 52 partners in 22 countries.
Abdul Latif Jameel Group, based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is one of the Arab world's most successful and respected business groups. Founded in 1945 by the late Sheikh Abdul Latif Jameel, the company was granted sole distribution rights for Toyota vehicles in Saudi Arabia ten years later, which it has maintained ever since. ALJ has a very active community services program with emphasis on education, training and development.