Bill Massaquoi - and the birth of Rebuild Africa (cont2.)

An experience one day in 1990 cemented Bill’s sense of life-calling. He had just returned to his hometown in Lofa because of the Liberian civil war, which was raging, uprooting entire populations from rural and urban communities and destroying available housing stocks. The majority of the country’s population was living in makeshift shelters, which exposed them to epidemic diseases such as cholera, pneumonia, and malaria. This massive displacement brought life to a complete halt, especially in rural communities. An estimated 200,000 people lost their lives in the 14-year conflict and Bill narrowly escaped death twice, as he walked the more than 200 miles from Monrovia to his hometown.

On entering his town, he entered the looted home of a missionary friend. In the rubble Bill found an article titled “Banking on the Poor” about the FINCA microfinance program in Latin America. The Founder, John Hatch, believed the poor lacked neither ambition nor skill, but simply resources. His approach gave the poor the opportunity to obtain loans without collateral at interest rates they could afford. As Bill sat in the ruins of the house and read, a vision began to develop. Microfinance could help the suffering people in his country if it could be sustained.

Bill was most attracted to this article because it offered long-term hope to the poor, helping them to create their own solutions for such problems as malnutrition, preventable disease, illiteracy and inadequate housing, with dignity and self-reliance. Bill related to these needs all too well, so he immediately began to plan how he could implement a similar program.

After three years, the situation became safe enough for Bill to return to university. Fired up by this “borrowed idea”, he now dreamt of running a microfinance program. He even implemented a small pilot project based on his ideas. On graduation, Bill was hired by a local development bank and soon promoted to the position of Junior Credit Analyst in the development-banking division. This much-needed introduction to the world of finance in Liberia enabled him to work with some of the best banking minds in his war-torn country. However, Bill was not satisfied by his personal success. The idea of another...

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