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Can Access to Smartphones Bridge the Digital Divide in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Research shows that mobile phones can be a useful tool in the fight against poverty, increasing both household income and consumption. But according to Amani M’Bale at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Graham A.N. Wright at MicroSave (MSC), to reach that potential, it’s important that these phones are able to bridge the digital divide, becoming accessible to, and used by, the underserved people they can benefit the most. They share several factors that can increase — or limit — the usage of smartphones and other mobile devices in sub-Saharan Africa.
- Categories
- Finance, Telecommunications
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Zero Waste vs. Climate Change: Why Waste Reduction Offers a Key Opportunity for Climate Action Through Private Enterprise
With the climate crisis growing increasingly urgent, pressure is mounting to find easily implementable, affordable solutions that yield fast results. As global leaders gather at the COP27 climate conference, waste reduction and management are increasingly seen as one such solution. According to Claire Arkin at GAIA, one reason for the enthusiasm around the waste sector’s climate potential is that it offers massive scope for business innovation. She discusses the connection between waste and climate change, and highlights some of the business models that are converting this global challenge into an opportunity for impact.
- Categories
- Environment, WASH
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The Benefits – And Downsides – of ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’: Is it Enhancing or Hindering Financial Inclusion?
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) schemes offer consumers immediate possession of goods, which they pay for over time via (usually interest-free) installments. According to Sarah Corley at the Alliance of Digital Finance Associations and Lotte Schou Zibell at the Asian Development Bank, BNPL can expand financial inclusion and access to consumer goods in emerging economies – but by offering easier access to credit, it also presents some pitfalls. They discuss the growth of BNPL, its benefits and risks, and some key practices that can maximize its positive impacts while avoiding potential downsides.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
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India’s Electric Vehicle Revolution: Six Trends That Will Shape the Sector in the Coming Years
India’s electric vehicle (EV) revolution is here. According to Venkat Rajaraman at Cygni, with the national government urging local manufacturers to switch to EVs – and subsidies and growing competition making them increasingly affordable – these vehicles are quickly becoming the country’s favorite mode of transportation. He explores six trends that are likely to shape the electric vehicle sector’s ongoing growth in India in the coming years.
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- Energy, Technology, Transportation
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A $500 Billion+ Market Opportunity for Real Impact: Three Ways Corporations Can Engage in Social Procurement
Social procurement – the practice of corporations buying products or services from social businesses – has gained substantial momentum in recent years. According to a report released earlier this year, the overall market volume of social procurement currently exceeds $2.5 billion, and it could reach $506 billion over the next decade. Jo Bautista at Yunus Social Business explores how corporations can get involved in social procurement, sharing three ways they can integrate social businesses into their value chains.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise
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Deploying Gender Lens Investing to Create Inclusive Economic Opportunities in Latin America
Gender lens investing has the potential to drive inclusive economic opportunities for women, their families and communities in Latin America. As Carmen Correa at Pro Mujer explains, the need for these efforts is clear: Only 5% of investment fund capital in the region goes to companies led by women, and just 14% of Latin American companies are women-owned. She shares three emerging insights that will be crucial to the success of gender lens investing in Latin America, and discusses how Pro Mujer is working to expand investments and advance women’s equality in the region.
- Categories
- Investing
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Overcoming the Limitations of Donations: An English Education Nonprofit in India Transitions to Social Enterprise
Access to quality English language instruction has become a key to upward mobility in the developing world. But as Andrew Spearing and Nilabh Agrawal at Instilt Educate point out, for nonprofits in the English education space that are looking to rapidly scale, the donation-only model is a non-starter. They discuss the limitations of the nonprofit revenue model, and explore how Instilt Educate has navigated the challenges it has encountered in launching a paid element to complement its usual donation-based fundraising.
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- Education, Social Enterprise
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To Stop Climate Catastrophe, Invest in Clean Cooking: Exploring the Lack of Funding – And Signs of Progress – In the Industry
As devastating heat waves and wildfires become an unwelcome part of summer around the world, it's clear that climate change is no longer a future risk we need to prepare for, but an ongoing crisis we need to navigate. To tackle this challenge, Dymphna van der Lans at the Clean Cooking Alliance argues that the world needs to phase out inefficient, greenhouse gas-emitting cooking methods like wood- and charcoal-burning fires – but for that to happen, funders will need to step up. She explores the lack of funding that has typically plagued the clean cooking sector, and discusses some promising signs of growing momentum.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
