Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus has received the prestigious Hillary Rodham Clinton Award in recognition of his contributions to poverty reduction and women’s empowerment.Former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton presented the award to Yunus at a ceremony held at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, on Thursday.Yunus was among four recipients of the award this year. Around 400 guests, including ambassadors from approximately 25 countries, entrepreneurs, teachers and researchers, attended the event at the university’s Gaston Hall.When Yunus’s name was announced, the audience rose to its feet and gave him a prolonged round of applause.Praising Yunus at the ceremony, Hillary Clinton said she had personally witnessed the work of Grameen Bank and how it had helped women become self-reliant, secure and empowered.What the women have achieved is extraordinary, she said, adding that Yunus had extended his work beyond Bangladesh and taken it to people across the world.Accepting the award, Yunus referred to the 50-year journey of his work and said the recognition marked five decades of efforts to improve people’s lives. He expressed hope that the recognition would send an important message to Bangladesh and inspire families associated with Grameen Bank.Yunus said Grameen Bank had worked to help poor people become self-reliant through microcredit and to empower women economically. He also stressed the need to rethink the purpose of education, saying the system should aim to develop young people as entrepreneurs rather than merely preparing them to seek jobs.Yunus expressed hope that Grameen University would be launched by the end of this year to help advance that vision.