On August 11

On this day in ...
… 1948, Ferdous Ara Begum (left), member of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and a specialist on gender issues, was born in Bangladesh. (photo credit) Begum has worked for many years in areas related to women and children’s rights. She worked for the government of Bangladesh as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, providing social and legal protection for women and children. As a Board Member of Grameen Bank, she helped offer microcredit to rural poor women in Bangladesh. She has also published on trafficking and dowries, and given talks on HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness.
… 1934 (75 years ago today), French pilot Hélène Boucher (right) became the fastest woman in the world. (photo credit) She beat the record by flying an average of 485 kilometers per hour (301 mph) over 100 kilometers (62 miles). She also held the altitude (5,200 meters, or 3.23 miles) and 8 other world records. Boucher, a stunt pilot, was the 1st woman buried at Les Invalides. She was posthumously dubbed Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur.

(Prior August 11 posts are here and here.)

Lending A Hand For African Development

The growth and development figures for Africa are too well known--and frankly too depressing--to relate in this post. Instead, I want to focus on one potential solution. I've recently become interested in an organization proposing a radical new approach to development: Angel investing in African entrepreneurs. MYC4 identifies its mission as helping to create "a world without poverty where everyone has the same access to knowledge, markets and capital." It takes inspiration from Nobel laureate and professor Mohammad Yunus, the founder of the microfinance movement pioneered by Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. While Grameen Bank focuses on lending small sums of money primarily to the rural poor, MYC4 goes a step further by harnessing the power of the internet to create networks beteween investors in rich countries and entrepreneurs in Africa. MYC4 handles the difficult work of evaluating proposed projects, while investors get to bid on supporting these pre-vetted business opportunities. It creates a potentially lucrative win-win possibility for all.

I wonder if anyone in the IntLawGrrls community has had direct experience with MYC4? If so, please share!