The Development Marketplace Prize – World Bank 2002

The World Bank is a source of financial help for all developing countries around the world. It’s not a bank in the current sense of the word. This international organization is actually the property of 185 countries which are member of the “Reconstruccion y Fomento (BIRF) y la asociacion international de Fomento (AIF).

In1998 the World Bank set up a program called the Development Marketplace. The purpose of this program was to reward the most innovative projects fighting against poverty with a grant to help launch these projects and spread awareness across countries and organisations. In 2001, the Development Marketplace received more than 2400 presentations from 122 countries. The World Bank stressed that the programs being presented had to conform to the following guidelines: 1) the projects had to participate in development and care for the needs of the poor. 2) They had to build an environment where there was room for investment, and create work opportunities in order to obtain sustainable growth. (For more details go to http://www.developmentmarketplace.org). The Fundacion Pro Vivienda Social along with the Asociación Mutual El Colmenar agreed that “social capital and strategic alliances, are the foundation for local development”. In this light the project puts forward the idea of neighbourhood and social organisation to achieve urban development.

The first step was to supervise the distribution of gas to the 4000 families in five barrios located around Cuartel V, Moreno area, Greater Buenos Aires, where lives an estimated 45000 people. The objective of the project is to develop a model of social participation for the construction of infrastructure and the supply of public services.

Once the jury selects a project it thus legitimizes the course of action the Foundation and the Mutual Asociation have chosen to adopt to attended the needs of the families with smaller incomes. The Project was rewarded on the basis that social organization would work to solve common neighbourhood problems, micro-credits as the tool to finance the works and the neighbours to allow them to be a part of their own development. The prize had a very influential impact. The Foundation is going through a phase of change and uncertainty, so for the Team to be rewarded with this prestigious prize was a great feeling as it finally felt that the efforts were being recognized and making a difference.

http://www.bancomundial.org/

                   Premio Banking on social change - Seeking Financial Solutions 2008

Ashoka is the global association of the world’s leading social entrepreneurs—men and women with system changing solutions for the world’s most urgent social problems. Since 1981, Ashoka have elected over 2,000 leading social entrepreneurs as “Ashoka Fellows”, providing them with living stipends, professional support, and access to a global network of peers in more than 60 countries. Within the global community, they develop models for collaboration and design infrastructure needed to advance the field of social entrepreneurship and the citizen sector. The “Fellows” inspire others to adopt and spread their innovations – demonstrating to all citizens that they too have the potential to be powerful changemakers. Changemakers is an Asoka initiative that focuses on the developing world and social innovation.

Fundación Pro Vivienda Social was elected as finalist of the Changemakers.net competition (Ashoka) Banking on Social Change – Seeking Financial Solutions. Ashoka choose our project over 285 proposals from 43 countries. Out of all the nominees, only three were choosen by a public online vote. FPVS was one of the three finalists.

http://www.ashoka.org.ar/

www.changemakers.net/competition/bankingonsocialchange

                                Microfinance, innovation, and sustainability.

In June 2009: Fundacion Pro Vivienda Social won the Giordano Dell’Amore “Microfinance, innovacion and sustainability” award. We were presented with a prize cheque of 50 thousand euros.

http://www.fgda.org/eventiuk.php