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January 26, 2024

Securitization for Social Impact: Why It’s the Ideal Instrument for Scaling Social Enterprises Providing Consumer Financing in the Developing World

Economic uncertainty has led to a risk-averse approach from investors in recent years, forcing social enterprises and other businesses in developing countries to find alternative sources of finance. Ron Pfende at d.light shares an innovative solution to this challenge: securitization, the process of transforming a group of cash-generating assets into one investable security. He explains how d.light has leveraged this approach to finance its growth, and how securitization yields returns for businesses and investors alike.

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January 22, 2024

Driving the EV Transition in LMICs: How Low- and Middle-Income Countries Can Accelerate the Adoption of Electric Vehicles

Amid mounting climate concerns, public health issues and economic challenges, the case for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is compelling. Based on the strategies adopted by numerous countries, including many pioneer LMICs, Daphnée Benayoun, Kiran Willmot and Debashish Roychoudhury at Dalberg share four priority drivers that governments should consider to accelerate and manage their EV transition.

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January 15, 2024

Job Growth is More than Digital Job Growth: Why Both Online and Offline Enterprises Deserve Investor Support

The appeal of the tech-driven economy can be hard for investors to resist. But Liliosa Mbirimi at the Leila Janah Foundation argues that focusing exclusively on the digital realm can exclude many offline entrepreneurs that are making major contributions to job creation in emerging markets. She discusses the need for investors to support both digital and non-digital entrepreneurs, and shares learnings from the Foundation's efforts to provide this support in Kenya and Uganda.

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January 10, 2024

Lean Thinking isn’t Just for Large Manufacturing Businesses: A Roadmap for Applying it to Small and Medium Enterprises

Toyota developed lean thinking — a rigorous, data-centric approach that aims to optimize business processes by empowering staff to identify and solve problems — in the 1950s. But as Yaquta Fatehi and Heather Esper at the William Davidson Institute explain, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly using lean methodologies to reduce costs, increase efficiency and boost customer satisfaction and profits. They define key concepts and standard practices in lean thinking, and propose a roadmap for applying these approaches to SMEs' operations.

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Uncategorized

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January 8, 2024

NextBillion’s Most Influential Articles of 2023: Announcing the Three Winners of our Annual Contest

As 2024 gets underway, we'd like to announce the results of NextBillion’s annual “Most Influential Article of the Year” contest. This year's contest featured a strong slate of articles, covering a diverse array of topics ranging from systems change to decarbonization, in sectors that included energy, agriculture, finance and more. We've highlighted the three winners, as selected by our readers, in this article.

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December 22, 2023

Announcing NextBillion’s Most Influential Articles of 2023: Cast Your Vote in our Annual Contest by Jan. 7!

As 2023 draws to a close, it’s time for NextBillion’s annual tradition: our “Most Influential Articles of the Year” contest. As we've done since 2012, we've selected 12 of our most-read articles from the past year, inviting readers to vote for the ones that influenced their thinking the most. You can vote multiple times — up to once per hour — during the voting period, which will run from Dec. 22 to 11:59 pm on Jan. 7. Best wishes for a healthy and prosperous new year!

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December 20, 2023

Is Latin America and the Caribbean Really Just 1% Circular?: A New Report Highlights the Hidden Role of Informal Workers in the Circular Economy

Latin America and the Caribbean is 1% circular — far below the global average of 7.2% — according to a recent Circle Economy Foundation report. That means just 1% of all the materials flowing through the region’s economy get a second life through repair, recycling or other means. But Ana Birliga Sutherland and Esther Goodwin Brown at Circle Economy Foundation explain that this number doesn't reflect the contributions of informal workers. They discuss the key role these workers play in the circular economy, and the need for more data and other efforts to support them.

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December 18, 2023

Achieving the Latina American Dream: How Entrepreneurship Can Empower Latin American Migrant Women and Their Communities

Latin American migrant women in the U.S. have the potential to be drivers of economic growth for themselves, their families, their communities and their countries — both native and naturalized. But as Carmen Correa at Pro Mujer explains, they often lack the tools and opportunities they need to build successful livelihoods, while facing unique obstacles. She explores why entrepreneurship provides a solution to these challenges, and discusses a free skilling platform that Pro Mujer offers to support Latina migrants in their entrepreneurial journey.

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Finance

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NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Guest Articles.

Driving the EV Transition in LMICs: How Low- and Middle-Income Countries Can Accelerate the Adoption of Electric Vehicles

Job Growth is More than Digital Job Growth: Why Both Online and Offline Enterprises Deserve Investor Support

Lean Thinking isn’t Just for Large Manufacturing Businesses: A Roadmap for Applying it to Small and Medium Enterprises

Is Latin America and the Caribbean Really Just 1% Circular?: A New Report Highlights the Hidden Role of Informal Workers in the Circular Economy

Achieving the Latina American Dream: How Entrepreneurship Can Empower Latin American Migrant Women and Their Communities

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