Freedom from Want tells the story of how – in a country where economic crisis is far from new – a small relief initiative became a development powerhouse. It takes us from Abed’s kitchen in Bangladesh, where he experimented with a solution that would eventually save hundreds of thousands of lives from the number-one child killer, diarrhea, to the caves in Afghanistan where BRAC micro-banker Noor Islam was held by kidnappers. The book describes how painstaking trial and error led to innovative social enterprise in tens of thousands of villages and a billion dollar organization that is today 80% self-financing in Bangladesh.
Ian Smillie, who has worked in international development for 30 years, is the perfect person to tell this truly amazing story. His writing goes beyond the statistics and technicalities to bring the people, heart and lessons of BRAC alive. Smillie is donating all royalties to BRAC.