Fostering Rural Development through Social Entrepreneurship:Lessons Learned of the Grameen Bank

Abstract 1
Many issues of rural communities have social nature and therefore their solution
requires innovative social solutions. From this perspective, social entrepreneurship
can help to solve problems in rural communities, especially help to reduce poverty
and inequality in these communities. Social entrepreneurship in rural areas is a
means to alleviate social problems by creating innovative solutions and mobilizing
the ideas, capacities, resources, and social institutions required for balance social
transformation of rural communities. Social entrepreneurs can aid in developing an
entrepreneurship ecosystem and sustainable business development model in rural
areas while finding the right opportunities unique to the real needs of rural
communities. The world has witnessed many successful experiences in the field of
social entrepreneurship. Many of these social businesses have a significant
contribution too empowerment of poor in local communities. Awareness of these
experiences can inspire policy makers to formulate pro-poor enabling policies as
well as entrepreneurs and investors to set up social enterprises in deprived areas. In
this article as result of a case study review, concept of social entrepreneurship and
its appropriateness for fostering development of rural communities has been
introduced and a brief experience of Grameen Bank as one of the success stories of
social entrepreneurship in the world is illustrated.