Syed M. Hashemi

Syed concentrates on identifying pro-poor innovations and disseminating best practices related to poverty outreach and impact, including the development of social performance indicators for tracking changes in the social and economic levels of MFI clients. Syed directed the Program for Research on Poverty Alleviation at Grameen Trust and taught development studies at Jahangirnagar University in Bangladesh. Syed has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California at Riverside. He speaks English, Bangla, and conversational Hindi.

By Syed M. Hashemi

Research

Graduating the Poorest into Microfinance:

Microfinance—or formal financial services for the poor—helps people fight poverty on their own terms, in a sustainable way.
Research

Is Microfinance an Effective Strategy to Reach the MDGs?

This paper reviews the mounting body of evidence showing that the availability of financial services for poor households (“microfinance”) is a critical contextual factor with strong impact on the achievement of the Milennium Development Goals.
Research

Linking Microfinance and Safety Net Programs to Include the Poorest

Most studies of microfinance programs in Bangladesh indicate that the poor, and especially poor women, have been effectively targeted, and that microfinance programs have been successful in opening up economic opportunities for their clients, increasing access to resources and contributing to their confidence and well-being.