ASA (Foundation)
25
1
"Up" is the number of experts who agree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in the
field. "Down" is the number of experts who disagree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in field.
Headquarters Location: New York, NY
Founded: 2007
Mission: The institutional mission of ASA is to support and strengthen the economy at the bottom of the socio-economic pyramid by facilitating access to financial services for the poor, marginalized and disadvantaged.
Tags:
international, microfinance, financial services, loans, microenterprises, technology loans, education, emergency relief, business development, agriculture
This organization has offices located worldwide. As the majority of our users are based in the U.S., the donation link is connected to the U.S. office.
This organization has offices located worldwide. As the majority of our users are based in the U.S., the donation link is connected to the U.S. office.
Summary
Stories
Expert Reviews
Leadership
From the Nonprofit
Leadership
Shafiqual Haque Choudhury.
Md. Shafiqual Haque Choudhury is the founder and President of ASA, an MFI in Bangladesh, which covers 4 million poor households, 5.8 million savers through a sustainable program of providing cost-effective financial services. ASA is known globally as the most cost-effective and quick growth organization. Md. Shafiqual Haque Choudhury obtained his Masters Degree in Sociology from Dhaka University in 1969.…
See full bio.
Financial Data for US Office
Overhead Ratio:
n/a
Total Revenue:
$80,144
From the Nonprofit
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Contact Info
Address:
244 Fifth Ave Ste M219
New York, NY 10001, USA
Story:
Learn about the origin of ASA, a microfinance institution based in Dhaka, Bangladesh:
At the end of Bangladesh’s War for Independence in 1971 the country went through a very complex social and political upheaval. The country needed major infrastructure reconstruction but the overall situation was not suitable for conducting nation building activities. Indeed, the country was faced with instability in the political, social, cultural and economic fields.
The main political constraints were frequent agitations, political unrest and numerous changes of governments, which were too inexperienced to keep the political situation stable. In such circumstances, policy formulation or planning for development was difficult. Moreover, the traditional bureaucratic administrative structure, which followed a top-down approach for development, was not connected with the actual socio-economic reality since the institutional structures could not reach the downtrodden people.
With this as the backdrop, a new kind of organization emerged that focused most of its work in the development sector. Some of those national and international organizations, called NGOs (Non-Government Organizations), started different programs to help the poor to introduce positive changes in their lives. Following the philosophy and the needs of the times, ASA was established in 1978 to materialize these goals through different kinds of development programs.
(Learn more about ASA's work at: http://www.asa.org.bd/about_origin.html)
Expert Reviews of ASA (Foundation)
Evidence of Impact Summary:
ASA has a financial self-sufficiency ratio of more than 166% and a high recovery rate. It is one of the biggest microfinance institutions in the world and, along with its domestic microfinance initiatives, is creating an innovative new fund called, CMI that will replicate the ASA model in countries around the world.Organization Strengths Summary:
This organization is incredibly fast, efficient, and impact-oriented. It has well-managed, controlled growth.See expert comments.
Areas for Improvement Summary:
One expert feels ASA should reinvest their earnings in expansion rather than business consulting.See expert comments.
Expert Comments: Organization Strengths
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They have a financial self-sufficiency ratio of more than 166% and a high recovery rate. | ||
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They have a rigid focus on financial performance. | ||
Efficient |
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This organization is incredibly fast, efficient, and impact-oriented. It has well-managed, controlled growth. | ||
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This organization has efficiency in service delivery. | ||
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This is a cost effective organization. | ||
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This organization is cost effective. | ||
Innovative |
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ASA is one of the biggest microfinance institutions in the world and, along with its domestic microfinance initiatives, is creating an innovative new fund called, CMI, that will replicate the ASA model in countries around the world. | ||
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This organization is cost effective, efficient, and innovative. | ||
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They have great scalability and innovation | ||
Outreach |
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O
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This is an outstanding organization because of its outreach. | ||
Expert Comments: Areas for Improvement
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Show:
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Foundation Professionals (F)
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Researchers and Faculty (R)
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Nonprofit Senior Staff (N)
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Other (consultants, journalists, policy makers) (O)
Strategy |
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They should work on their operations strategy and product more. | ||
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They should reinvest their earnings in expansion rather than business consulting. | ||
Expand Programming |
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They should develop a west coast office. | ||
Leadership
Shafiqual Haque Choudhury
Founder and President
Founder and President
From the Nonprofit
The nonprofit has not added any comments yet. If you are a representative of this nonprofit and would like to leave a comment, please email us at
feedback@myphilanthropedia.org
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