Founded in Seoul in 2013, the GSEF is a global network mobilizing local governments and civil society actors around the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). With its headquarters now located in Bordeaux since 2022, the GSEF brings together 91 members from 36 countries across 5 continents, making it an essential platform for promoting a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
A joint mission
By joining the GSEF, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation pursues a shared objective: to support the development of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) worldwide. This involves dialogue between public authorities and civil society actors to co-create public policies that favor the SSE and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Our areas of action
Our membership in the GSEF allows us to actively contribute to its five strategic pillars:
Advocacy at the international, national and local levels
Training and capacity building territories
Support for development networks of public and private actors
Promoting initiatives and exchange of experiences
Applied research and publications
Alongside our peers around the world, we will amplify our advocacy for inclusive and responsible finance, strengthen our capacities by sharing experiences, and contribute to the establishment of ecosystems favorable to the social and solidarity economy.
A strengthened commitment
This membership represents an important step in our commitment to the Social and Solidarity Economy, strengthening our position in promoting a fairer and more sustainable economy, rooted in local communities and serving the most vulnerable populations.
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/publications-linkedin.png7891200Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-08-04 12:00:402026-08-18 17:46:41The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation joins the GSEF
The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation continues its podcast series that features stories from leaders of the Grameen family who are reshaping the landscape of inclusive finance and social business around the world. In this sixth episode, we meet Professor Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, microfinance pioneer and visionary of social entrepreneurship, to explore his trajectory from Bangladesh to the world stage and his vision of the Three Zeros: Zero Poverty, Zero Unemployment and Zero Net Carbon Emissions..
What you'll discover
Professor Yunus shares his journey, from the 1970s in Bangladesh where he challenged the paradigm of inevitable poverty to his recent role as head of the transitional government organizing democratic elections in Bangladesh for 180 million people.
Explore how his simple intuition "What if the poorest could become actors in their own development?" changed our understanding of entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, and social change. Also discover his latest initiative: a pioneer university entirely dedicated to the creation of a world of Three Zeros..
Key Highlights
The power of simple intuition How a question asked in 1976 in Bangladesh enabled the development of microfinance, redefining what poor people can achieve
The fundamental role of women : Why women, naturally creative and imaginative, are the main drivers of social entrepreneurship and economic transformation
The Three Zeros Vision A radically different economy, based on Zero Poverty, Zero Unemployment and Zero Net Carbon; not as a utopia, but as a necessity
Imagination as a foundation of change Imagination costs nothing but creates everything: it is the starting point of any real transformation
A new university launched this year that completely rethinks education, training job creators rather than job seekers
Young people as architects of the future How to inspire a generation to define which world they want to build
Why this matters
The world is facing an unprecedented convergence of crises: persistent poverty, youth unemployment, environmental degradation, and gender inequality. Professor Yunus is proposing not a series of solutions, but a complete new imagination of the economic system itself. His Three Zeros vision is not a distant dream – it is an urgent call to rethink our institutions, our universities, our businesses, and our very conception of what it means to “create value.”
Perfect for
Social entrepreneurs and impact creators, political decision-makers and public transformation actors, innovators in inclusive finance, women entrepreneurs, young people seeking meaning and purpose, advocates of climate action and the circular economy, impact investors, leaders of non-profit organizations, and anyone who believes that systemic change is possible and necessary.
Key quote
" What if the poorest people could become the actors of their own development? " – Professor Yunus' founding question
" Imagination costs nothing. Imagine what you want to build and you'll be amazed to see it become reality. "
Listen now
Listen now and be inspired by the visionary who showed the world that another economic system is possible.
________________________________________
Subscribe to our podcast series to stay informed about upcoming episodes featuring other transformative leaders from the Grameen family who are creating change across continents and sectors.
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/yunus-fr-2.png10801508Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-07-27 10:46:152026-07-27 12:51:46Podcast: A Journey for change in Inclusive Finance and Social Entrepreneurship #6
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/yunus-fr.png10801920Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-07-27 10:45:462026-07-27 12:50:59Episode 6: The Three Zeros Economy with Professor Muhammad Yunus: Building a world without poverty, unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions
Grameen Credit-Agricole Foundation OXUS Amankulovo Shirimbubu Woner of 2.5 hectares of sugar beet. She bought beet plants using her 8th loans Zatbek Samamkhan Furnitures shop She belongs on a group Loan of 700,000 tenges To buy stock Interview with her loan officer Lyailiya Bimenova
Measuring the true impact: the experience of 271 women in Kyrgyzstan
As a partner of OXUS Kyrgyzstan, We participated in an impact study conducted by the firm leonardo.impact, in collaboration with the local service provider M-Vector. Between November and December 2025, we interviewed 271 women borrowers across Kyrgyzstan to measure the true impact of microfinance services on their lives.
Significant progress, but persistent challenges
The results are compelling: 83% of women report improved income and better quality of life, while 78% feel more confident in their financial decisions. However, the study reveals significant challenges: 26% of women face significant vulnerability regarding financial resilience, and 15% of women report being completely excluded from decisions about how their loan is used.
Beyond credit: towards sustainable empowerment
This study illuminates the path forward: beyond credit alone, sustainable transformation requires integrating savings, insurance, and financial education to convert economic gains into genuine empowerment.
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/kirghizstan-oxus-didier-gentilhomme-1-scaled.jpg17092560Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-07-08 11:13:172026-08-18 17:11:27Study on OXUS women clients in Kyrgyzstan
This edition of "Field News" celebrates the 2026 International Year of Woman Farmer by highlighting the work of four partners of the Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation: Kashf Foundation in Pakistan, Mikra in Bosnia-Herzegovina, MicroLoan Foundation in Malawi, and OXUS in Tajikistan.
Through inspiring testimonies, the article demonstrates how financial inclusion, technical training, and capacity building can improve significantly the lives of women farmers. Although their contributions to food security and community resilience often remain invisible and underfunded, these initiatives show that meaningful change is possible.
Women like Mumtaz in Pakistan, Jasminka in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Mary in Malawi, and Zinnatoy in Tajikistan embody this transformation. They illustrate how access to credit, to saving, to insurance, to modern agricultural knowledge, and support networks enable them to develop thriving enterprises, strengthen the resilience of their households, and become agents of economic and climate change in their communities.
These experiences underscore a shared conviction: investing in women farmers is not merely a matter of equality, it is a necessity for sustainable economic growth, food security, and climate adaptation.
Discover how financial inclusion and community support are redefining the conditions for success for farmers around the world, and how our partners' models in Pakistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Malawi and Tajikistan can be adapted to different contexts.
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/mary-mlf-1.png267356Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-06-30 10:47:382026-06-30 17:11:03Celebrating the Women Who Feed the World
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/mary-mlf-1.png267356Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-06-30 10:38:492026-09-02 09:11:57No. 6: Celebrating the women who feed the world
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/kirghizstan-oxus-didier-gentilhomme-1-scaled.jpg17092560Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-06-29 15:18:062026-08-20 12:18:03Study on OXUS female customers in Kyrgyzstan
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/save-the-date.png7281414Anais Pantzerhttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngAnais Pantzer2026-06-29 10:09:392026-06-29 10:09:52Conference between Professor Muhammad Yunus and Minister Aurore Bergé
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus participated in 50th Board of Directors Meeting of the Foundation May 28, 2026, thus marking eighteen years of fruitful partnership between the Grameen Trust and the Foundation.
Arriving in Paris on May 27, Professor Yunus led a delegation including key figures from the Grameen movement, including Md. Ashraful Hassan, Vice President of the Foundation, Lamiya Morshed, Executive Director of the Yunus Center, and Shazeeb M Khairul Islam, Managing Director of YY Ventures.
During the welcome dinner, Professor Yunus spoke with Eric Vial, the new Chairman of the Crédit Agricole Group, alongside senior executives Olivier Gavalda, Raphaël Appert, Chairman of the Foundation and Véronique Faujour, its general delegate.
The following day, May 28, Professor Yunus participated in a public meeting alongside Aurore Bergé, Minister for Gender Equality and the Fight Against Discrimination. This conference, moderated by Véronique Faujour, brought together more than 150 people.
Professor Yunus shared his vision with the audience... Three zeros: zero poverty, zero unemployment, zero net carbon emissions. Using the metaphor of Aladdin's lamp, he reminded them that the world belongs to the youth, endowed with unprecedented power. "You are born with Aladdin's lamp in your hand. If you ask for a cup of coffee, you waste the magic. But if you ask to end poverty and create a world with three zeros, the genie will grant your wish," he declared, inviting young people to dare to reimagine the world.
The Professor also shared lessons learned from the July uprising in Bangladesh, where students, including many women, led a peaceful revolution against corruption, illustrating the transformative potential of engaged youth. "Suddenly, the streets filled with girls and young women on the front lines," he recounted.
Minister Aurore Bergé reminded everyone that Inclusion is not a cost, but a strategic investment. «The greatest risk we face is not failure, but indifference,» she stated. The Minister emphasized the need to rethink public policies to prevent exclusion from the outset, rather than correcting it after the fact. She stressed that societies thrive when women and marginalized groups have equal access to opportunities.
Professor Yunus's presence at this 50th Board of Trustees meeting represents much more than a simple visit: It reaffirms the unwavering commitment of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation to the issues of financial inclusion and economic empowerment.
As Professor Yunus reminded us: "Let's create a new civilization. The world belongs to the youth. It's up to them to think big and show imagination! »"A call that resonates more than ever, as the Foundation continues its commitment through its LIFT 2028 strategic plan to build fairer, more egalitarian and more prosperous societies for all.
https://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/fondation-grameen-credit-agricole-28-06-2026-08-scaled.jpg17072560Philippe Guichanduthttps://www.gca-foundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/logo-gca-fondation-fr.pngPhilippe Guichandut2026-06-11 14:26:522026-06-17 11:00:52Professor Muhammad Yunus honored at the Foundation's 50th Board of Trustees meeting
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The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation joins the GSEF
The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation is pleased to announce its membership in Global Forum for Social and Solidarity Economy (GSEF).
About the GSEF
Founded in Seoul in 2013, the GSEF is a global network mobilizing local governments and civil society actors around the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). With its headquarters now located in Bordeaux since 2022, the GSEF brings together 91 members from 36 countries across 5 continents, making it an essential platform for promoting a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
A joint mission
By joining the GSEF, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation pursues a shared objective: to support the development of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) worldwide. This involves dialogue between public authorities and civil society actors to co-create public policies that favor the SSE and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Our areas of action
Our membership in the GSEF allows us to actively contribute to its five strategic pillars:
Alongside our peers around the world, we will amplify our advocacy for inclusive and responsible finance, strengthen our capacities by sharing experiences, and contribute to the establishment of ecosystems favorable to the social and solidarity economy.
A strengthened commitment
This membership represents an important step in our commitment to the Social and Solidarity Economy, strengthening our position in promoting a fairer and more sustainable economy, rooted in local communities and serving the most vulnerable populations.
Voices for Change – Véronique Faujour, Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation
Podcast: A Journey for change in Inclusive Finance and Social Entrepreneurship #6
Episode 6: The Economy Three Zeros with Professor Muhammad Yunus: Building a world without poverty, unemployment and net carbon emissions
Discover the podcast: Episode 6
Welcome to our podcast series
The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation continues its podcast series that features stories from leaders of the Grameen family who are reshaping the landscape of inclusive finance and social business around the world. In this sixth episode, we meet Professor Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, microfinance pioneer and visionary of social entrepreneurship, to explore his trajectory from Bangladesh to the world stage and his vision of the Three Zeros: Zero Poverty, Zero Unemployment and Zero Net Carbon Emissions..
What you'll discover
Professor Yunus shares his journey, from the 1970s in Bangladesh where he challenged the paradigm of inevitable poverty to his recent role as head of the transitional government organizing democratic elections in Bangladesh for 180 million people. Explore how his simple intuition "What if the poorest could become actors in their own development?" changed our understanding of entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, and social change. Also discover his latest initiative: a pioneer university entirely dedicated to the creation of a world of Three Zeros..
Key Highlights
Why this matters
The world is facing an unprecedented convergence of crises: persistent poverty, youth unemployment, environmental degradation, and gender inequality. Professor Yunus is proposing not a series of solutions, but a complete new imagination of the economic system itself. His Three Zeros vision is not a distant dream – it is an urgent call to rethink our institutions, our universities, our businesses, and our very conception of what it means to “create value.”
Perfect for
Social entrepreneurs and impact creators, political decision-makers and public transformation actors, innovators in inclusive finance, women entrepreneurs, young people seeking meaning and purpose, advocates of climate action and the circular economy, impact investors, leaders of non-profit organizations, and anyone who believes that systemic change is possible and necessary.
Key quote
" What if the poorest people could become the actors of their own development? " – Professor Yunus' founding question
" Imagination costs nothing. Imagine what you want to build and you'll be amazed to see it become reality. "
Listen now
Listen now and be inspired by the visionary who showed the world that another economic system is possible.
________________________________________
Subscribe to our podcast series to stay informed about upcoming episodes featuring other transformative leaders from the Grameen family who are creating change across continents and sectors.
Discover the podcast via this link
French transcript
English transcript
Episode 6: The Three Zeros Economy with Professor Muhammad Yunus: Building a world without poverty, unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions
Study on OXUS women clients in Kyrgyzstan
Grameen Credit-Agricole Foundation OXUS Amankulovo Shirimbubu Woner of 2.5 hectares of sugar beet. She bought beet plants using her 8th loans Zatbek Samamkhan Furnitures shop She belongs on a group Loan of 700,000 tenges To buy stock Interview with her loan officer Lyailiya Bimenova
Measuring the true impact: the experience of 271 women in Kyrgyzstan
As a partner of OXUS Kyrgyzstan, We participated in an impact study conducted by the firm leonardo.impact, in collaboration with the local service provider M-Vector. Between November and December 2025, we interviewed 271 women borrowers across Kyrgyzstan to measure the true impact of microfinance services on their lives.
Significant progress, but persistent challenges
The results are compelling: 83% of women report improved income and better quality of life, while 78% feel more confident in their financial decisions. However, the study reveals significant challenges: 26% of women face significant vulnerability regarding financial resilience, and 15% of women report being completely excluded from decisions about how their loan is used.
Beyond credit: towards sustainable empowerment
This study illuminates the path forward: beyond credit alone, sustainable transformation requires integrating savings, insurance, and financial education to convert economic gains into genuine empowerment.
➡️ More information here: Report OKG x GCAF x leonardo
Celebrating the Women Who Feed the World
Celebrating the Women Who Feed the World
This edition of "Field News" celebrates the 2026 International Year of Woman Farmer by highlighting the work of four partners of the Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation: Kashf Foundation in Pakistan, Mikra in Bosnia-Herzegovina, MicroLoan Foundation in Malawi, and OXUS in Tajikistan.
Through inspiring testimonies, the article demonstrates how financial inclusion, technical training, and capacity building can improve significantly the lives of women farmers. Although their contributions to food security and community resilience often remain invisible and underfunded, these initiatives show that meaningful change is possible.
Women like Mumtaz in Pakistan, Jasminka in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Mary in Malawi, and Zinnatoy in Tajikistan embody this transformation. They illustrate how access to credit, to saving, to insurance, to modern agricultural knowledge, and support networks enable them to develop thriving enterprises, strengthen the resilience of their households, and become agents of economic and climate change in their communities.
These experiences underscore a shared conviction: investing in women farmers is not merely a matter of equality, it is a necessity for sustainable economic growth, food security, and climate adaptation.
Discover how financial inclusion and community support are redefining the conditions for success for farmers around the world, and how our partners' models in Pakistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Malawi and Tajikistan can be adapted to different contexts.
➡️ More information here: 2026: International Year of the Woman Farmer
🔗 Full article via this link
No. 6: Celebrating the women who feed the world
Study on OXUS female customers in Kyrgyzstan
Conference between Professor Muhammad Yunus and Minister Aurore Bergé
Professor Muhammad Yunus honored at the Foundation's 50th Board of Trustees meeting
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus participated in 50th Board of Directors Meeting of the Foundation May 28, 2026, thus marking eighteen years of fruitful partnership between the Grameen Trust and the Foundation.
Arriving in Paris on May 27, Professor Yunus led a delegation including key figures from the Grameen movement, including Md. Ashraful Hassan, Vice President of the Foundation, Lamiya Morshed, Executive Director of the Yunus Center, and Shazeeb M Khairul Islam, Managing Director of YY Ventures.
During the welcome dinner, Professor Yunus spoke with Eric Vial, the new Chairman of the Crédit Agricole Group, alongside senior executives Olivier Gavalda, Raphaël Appert, Chairman of the Foundation and Véronique Faujour, its general delegate.
The following day, May 28, Professor Yunus participated in a public meeting alongside Aurore Bergé, Minister for Gender Equality and the Fight Against Discrimination. This conference, moderated by Véronique Faujour, brought together more than 150 people.
Professor Yunus shared his vision with the audience... Three zeros: zero poverty, zero unemployment, zero net carbon emissions. Using the metaphor of Aladdin's lamp, he reminded them that the world belongs to the youth, endowed with unprecedented power. "You are born with Aladdin's lamp in your hand. If you ask for a cup of coffee, you waste the magic. But if you ask to end poverty and create a world with three zeros, the genie will grant your wish," he declared, inviting young people to dare to reimagine the world.
The Professor also shared lessons learned from the July uprising in Bangladesh, where students, including many women, led a peaceful revolution against corruption, illustrating the transformative potential of engaged youth. "Suddenly, the streets filled with girls and young women on the front lines," he recounted.
Minister Aurore Bergé reminded everyone that Inclusion is not a cost, but a strategic investment. «The greatest risk we face is not failure, but indifference,» she stated. The Minister emphasized the need to rethink public policies to prevent exclusion from the outset, rather than correcting it after the fact. She stressed that societies thrive when women and marginalized groups have equal access to opportunities.
Professor Yunus's presence at this 50th Board of Trustees meeting represents much more than a simple visit: It reaffirms the unwavering commitment of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation to the issues of financial inclusion and economic empowerment.
As Professor Yunus reminded us: "Let's create a new civilization. The world belongs to the youth. It's up to them to think big and show imagination! »"A call that resonates more than ever, as the Foundation continues its commitment through its LIFT 2028 strategic plan to build fairer, more egalitarian and more prosperous societies for all.
Watch the full conference by clicking here.