Nobel winner visits Oldham

A NOBEL Peace Prize-winning economist is visiting Oldham this weekend.

Oldham Council is hosting the visit by social activist Prof Muhammad Yunus, who will speak to council members and residents in the council chamber at the civic centre on Sunday (5pm).

Prof Yunus is a Bangladeshi banker and economist, widely credited as the founder of the concepts of “microcredit” and “microfinance”.

He launched the Grameen Bank in the late 1970s to offer microcredit — small loans to poor Bangladeshi villagers to buy livestock or fund poverty-beating enterprises. The model has since been copied in developing countries across the globe. The bank now lends to around 20 million people globally and will soon open its first UK branch.

Councillor Abdul Jabbar, Oldham Council cabinet member for finance, said: “When we learned that Prof Yunus was visiting the region we invited him to visit us.”

Anyone who wishes to attend the event should email Councillor Abdul Jabbar as soon as possible on abdul.jabbar@oldham.gov.uk