Nobel laureate and Grameen Bank founder Dr Muhammad Yunus received a standing ovation from around 400 guests in Washington, DC, on Thursday as he was presented with the Hillary Rodham Clinton Award in recognition of his work in poverty alleviation and women’s empowerment.
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the award to Yunus at a ceremony at Gaston Hall of Georgetown University, attended by ambassadors from around 25 countries, entrepreneurs, academics and researchers.
The audience rose to its feet and applauded for an extended period when Yunus was announced as a recipient.
Reema Nanavaty, director of India’s Self-Employed Women’s Association, and fashion designer Tory Burch, founder of the Tory Burch Foundation, also received the Hillary Rodham Clinton Award. Muna Sukhtian, board chair of Jordan’s Microfund for Women, received the inaugural Georgetown Ambassadors Award.
The awards, presented by Clinton and the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, recognise leadership in advancing women’s rights and promoting a more peaceful and secure world.
Speaking at the ceremony, Yunus reflected on his five decades of work in poverty alleviation through microcredit and outlined his vision of encouraging young people to become entrepreneurs rather than job seekers.
He said he hoped to launch Grameen University by the end of this year to help transform the education system and encourage creativity and entrepreneurship among students.
“We are not job seekers; we are employers,” Yunus said, describing the mindset he wants young people to adopt.
He criticised the existing education system for focusing largely on preparing students for employment rather than equipping them to become creative entrepreneurs and job creators.
Yunus also highlighted the potential of social business to address social challenges. Such enterprises, he explained, can generate profits or surpluses, but these should be reinvested in tackling social problems rather than accumulated as personal wealth.
Reflecting on Grameen Bank’s experience, he said microcredit had helped transform millions of families, particularly by enabling women to become financially independent, secure and empowered.
He noted that the children of Grameen Bank borrowers were now growing up and entering the workforce, making entrepreneurship an increasingly important priority for the next generation.
Clinton said she had witnessed Grameen Bank’s work firsthand and praised its contribution to helping women become self-reliant, secure and empowered. She also acknowledged Yunus’s role in extending the approach beyond Bangladesh to communities around the world.