Muhammud Yunus, an economist, noble peace laureate and founder of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh at the recently concluded One Young World Summit held in Johannesburg said that he believed in the young generation being able to fully eradicate poverty. ‘You have inherited a world full of disease, war, poverty and strife. But you can still create the change that you want to. You can eradicate poverty, it is possible. How about we set a date and decide that from now on, we are going to work towards that?’ he said. There are optimists like that, who believe in social change and doing business for good.

 

Diana Mitlin has written a book titled: ‘Reducing Urban Poverty in the Global South’. This book highlights the investment in the informal urban settlements which helps leaders to canvass for votes in the electoral processes. But these have not helped a lot; instead we see a great trend of communities creating their own groups that create solutions for themselves and the communities that they are a part of. Important to note is that the women are a focal point on making sure that this happens. They easily take on the leadership mantle and are also result driven. So in the end, we find roads are maintained, there are proper sanitation measures and waste collection in the community is properly done. As these solutions are made, there is a chance to be able to partner with local government as well, with time. The change and growth that has happened amongst the communities has been guided by the unity exhibited by the ‘squatters and tenants’ that are eager to change the world the best way that they know how.

 

This could be a case of people taking matters into their own hands. The urban dwellers are seen taking on a role that their leaders should be taking on, creating the change that they want to see. This is a formidable trend, which means that with time the leaders can begin to consult the social change leaders.

 

So can we end poverty? The answer lies with you and me.