How great is the need for microcredit?
More than 1.3 billion people in the world are trying to survive on less than $1 a day. This leaves them without the means to adequately feed, clothe, or shelter their families. According to a 2006 report (The State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report), microfinance institutions served 113 million families during the previous year – but more than 500 million families who could definitely have benefited had no access to the services. Neither did an additional 300 million who might have derived benefit. Estimates suggest that only one out of every eight people who could benefit from microfinance has the ability to access it.
