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How Latino Entrepreneurs Can Fight Intergenerational Poverty: The Impact of Retirement Plans
Hispanics in the United States have an estimated buying power of $1.4 trillion – about 10 percent of the country's buying power. Despite this economic clout, they lag behind in retirement savings. Traditionally, many have taken care of their elderly parents and, in turn, expect their children to do the same for them. Manuel Carvallo of Hispanic Wealth suggests it's time for the growing number of Latino entrepreneurs to take the lead by establishing retirement plans.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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Something Doesn’t Add Up: Improving Basic Math Skills Among Microentrepreneurs in Rural India
Running any business requires a basic knowledge of arithmetic. Entrepreneurs need to calculate change due on a sale, profits and loss, commissions on product sales, and interest rates on loans. If they can't, their business will likely struggle. As part of a study to identify whether basic math skills contribute to entrepreneurial success in rural India, Madura Microfinance assessed the numerical capabilities of microentrepreneurs. The results were surprising – and somewhat alarming.
- Categories
- Education
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When Failure is Hard to Recognize: Facing Hard Truths about Microfinance
After decades of faith in the ability of tiny loans to transform people’s lives, quantitative research has revealed that microfinance rarely lives up to the hype. But in spite of their lackluster impact, microfinance projects have persisted – the question is, why? After seven years of observing various actors throughout the microfinance value chain, Erin Beck, an assistant professor at the University of Oregon, has an answer. She discusses how policymakers, MFI leaders, employees and even customers contribute to microfinance’s persistence.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment
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Snapcart raises $10M to shed light on consumer spending in emerging markets
A 2-year-old startup tucked away in Southeast Asia, Snapcart is taking on $15 billion powerhouse Nielsen by shining a light on the black box that is consumer spending.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Helping Farmers Rebuild After Civil War Isn’t Charity; It’s Good Business
As an agribusiness owner in Africa, GADC founder Bruce Robertson has grown weary of the silver bullet solutions proposed for transforming rural economies. In 22 years in Uganda, he has yet to see a quick fix. But private enterprise has enormous potential to improve rural lives when donors and businesses collaborate, he says, explaining GADC's "replicable model with huge potential for expansion."
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- Agriculture, Impact Assessment, Social Enterprise
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Even Africa’s poorest countries are too expensive to be the world’s next manufacturing hub
In a bid to find out if African countries can “break into global manufacturing in a substantial way”, the researchers found factories in Africa were almost always more expensive to start and run. Looking at overall costs, small African firms were 39% more expensive than comparative firms elsewhere while medium and large firms were around 50% more expensive.
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- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Three Key Insights from GIIN Report on the Power of Capacity Building in Impact Investing
Capacity-building support, also known as technical assistance, is a vital tool used by many investors to complement their investments and expand and deepen their impact. When applied well, capacity building improves investor competitiveness, enhances business performance of investees, expands impact for beneficiaries and strengthens markets, writes Abhilash Mudaliar of GIIN.
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- Impact Assessment, Investing
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As Impact Investors, Here’s Why We Need to Elevate Human Capital
In a race to bring product to market, forethought and structure around human capital falls lower on the list. Under-investment in talent is crippling in the markets in which impact-focused funds like Blue Haven Initiative invest. The fund's Lauren Cochran and Grace Horwitz argue it's time for investors to take a more hands-on role.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Investing
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