Yunus discusses social business, MDGs with Korean leaders

IMAGE Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus poses for photographs with Ambassador Dho Young-shim, chairperson of UNWTO ST-EP; Ambassador Kim Won-soo, deputy Chef de Cabinet and special adviser to the secretary-general, and lawmakers Na Kyung Won, Sang Eun Park, and Young-Hee Choi during a visit to South Korea recently. Photo: Yunus Centre Star Business Report

Nobel peace prize winner Professor Muhammad Yunus discussed social business and ways to achieve millennium development goals globally by applying the new economic theory during a visit to South Korea recently.

The microcredit pioneer was in Seoul on August 14-16 and discussed social business with the country's business and political leaders.

Kim Moon-Soo, governor of Gyeonggi province, who is interested in setting up a social business fund in collaboration with the Yunus Centre in Bangladesh, hosted a dinner in honour of Prof Yunus.

During the visit Dr Yunus also met with Korean parliamentarians from both the ruling party and the opposition, to discuss how to expedite the process of achieving MDGs globally, said Yunus Centre in a statement.

The lawmakers expressed their deep interest in applying social businesses for achieving the MDGs.

Their discussions also included issues relating to microcredit in Korea.

The meeting of the parliamentarians was organised by Ambassador Dho Young-shim, member of the UN MDG Advocacy group, which is working to achieve the goals globally, under the leadership of the UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon.

Yunus delivered a public lecture on microcredit programme at the Ewha Women's University. The Ewha Centre for Peace Studies organised the lecture held at the Press Centre ofn Seoul.

The founder of Grameen Bank was received by the president of the university and had lunch with deans and faculty members.

Yunus was made the Distinguished Professor of Ewha Women's University in 2007, and is invited to give a lecture every year at the university.

Collated by Brother Shafi Chowdhury