Banker gains Peace Prize.

Oslo -- The Nobel awards committee has awarded the 2006 Peace Prize to a Bangladeshi economist, Muhammed Yunnus, who founded the Grameen Bank in 1983. He pioneered the idea of microcredit, lending out small sums to poor people, a majority of whom were women, so they could buy supplies and equipment to set themselves up in their own businesses.

Though criticized for the high rate of interest charged (20%), Grameen awards loans without collateral and with flexible repayment schedules. The average loan is about $200 and the bank has millions of customers who no longer have to rely on loan sharks. Today it is the largest rural bank in Bangladesh, with a repayment record of 98%. It is credited with helping many Bangladeshis escape the poverty trap. "Poverty alleviation is peace" is Yunnus' watchword (Nat. Post, Globe, Oct. 14, 2006).