Asa founder passes away
Shafiqual Haque Choudhury, founder and president of the Association for Social Advancement (ASA), a leading microfinance institution serving millions of borrowers across the country, breathed his last at a city hospital early yesterday.
He was 72.
An adviser to a former caretaker government, Shafiqual died at Square Hospital due to a cardiac shock, ASA said in its website.
He left behind his wife, three sons and a host of friends and relatives to mourn his death.
Born in Habiganj in 1949, he obtained a master's degree in sociology from Dhaka University in 1969 and worked as a trainer for the Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD).
In the volatile days of the country, Shafiqual founded ASA in 1978 in remote Tapra village under the then Manikganj sub-division with a mission of welfare of the poor, marginalised and disadvantaged and the vision to establish a poverty-free society.
ASA provides several microfinance products to its members, including savings, insurance, loans tailored for agri-business and the information technology (IT) sector, and a free-of-charge health assistance programme for "major/critical diseases," according to microcapital.org.
Shafiqual was well-known for his insistence on preserving the slim, low-cost nature of ASA's operations through standardisation of products, simplification of procedures, and a zero-tolerance rule on late repayments, and has been compared to Henry Ford by the Asian Development Bank's quarterly Finance for the Poor, as a result.
Different organisations, including Gonoshasthaya Kendra, and dignitaries, including Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus and Planning Minister MA Mannan, expressed deep shock at his demise.
Recollecting the ASA founder's immense contributions to lifting people out of poverty through microcredit, Dr Yunus said, "He entered the microcredit sector rather abruptly, without having any relevant institutional or academic preparation. Yet, he never considered this as a barrier. He was resolute in his decision and worked relentlessly to meet his aspirations. His limitless courage was his true strength."
In the message from Yunus Centre, he said,"Although he joined in this sector late, he made his institution to become one of the top two microfinancing entities in the country within a short time by merit of his courage, leadership and managerial skills.
"Besides leading ASA's vast operation in the country, Shafiqual Haque Choudhury also expanded the services to many other countries. He collaborated with various international organisations to help microcredit reach different countries. He encouraged a host of academics, donor organisations, and leaders of international organisations, who were not interested in microcredit, to join him and believe in this sector," he said.
"The people of the country will be forever indebted to Shafiqual Haque Choudhury for his contributions," Dr Yunus added.
Shafiqual was buried at Martyred Intellectual Graveyard in Mirpur around 2:50pm after a namaz-e-janaza at the Shishu Palli Jame Mosque in Shyamoli.
Comments