A man walks on the road between Nouahibou and Nouakchott, where three Spanish aid workers were abducted in Mauritania, December 3, 2009. (Photo by Rafael Marchante/Reuters)

Colombian rider Diana Carolina Penuela Martinez competes in the women's Elite Individual Time Trial cycling event during the UCI 2025 Road World Championships, in Kigali, on September 21, 2025. (Photo by Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP Photo)

The shoemaker in Turkey, the potato seller in Vietnam, and the weaver in Bolivia are among the billions of low-income entrepreneurs who make the world go round. They are also the type of people who can benefit significantly from microfinance. Every year, the Consultative Group To Assist The Poor (or CGAP) hosts a photo contest asking entrants to submit photos based around the idea of microfinance.The purpose of the contest is to give amateur and professional photographers a chance to show the different ways that poor households manage their financial lives and make their lives better through financial inclusion. Photo: South Asia Regional Winner – “Bricks Worker”, Bangladesh. A private enterprise worker is working at a brick field. These small businesses are creating new job opportunities for many poor people. (Photo by Moksumul Haque)

Residents of Ezbet Hamada in Cairo's Mataria district gather to eat Iftar, the meal to end their fast at sunset, during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt on April 6, 2023. (Photo by Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters)

China's Sun Jiajun competes during the men's 4x100m medley relay swimming heat at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, Tuesday, September 26, 2023. (Photo by Lee Jin-man/AP Photo)

Silver Medalists Thomas Daley and Noah Williams of Team Great Britain celebrate as they pose following the Diving medal ceremony after the Men’s Synchronised 10m Platform Final on day three of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Aquatics Centre on July 29, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Marc Aspland/The Times)

A racegoers cheers on her horse in Race 4 ahead of the race of the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, November 7, 2017. (Photo by Andy Brownbill/AP Photo)

South Korean emergency services personnel wearing protective clothing participate in an anti-terror and anti-chemical terror drill on the sidelines of the joint South Korea-US Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) military exercise, at a shopping mall in Seoul on August 23, 2022. (Photo by Anthony Wallace/AFP Photo)