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Efficiency vs. Effectiveness: What Low- and Middle-Income Countries Can Learn from a Key Business Mistake in the Developed World
Over the centuries, free enterprise has excelled at driving efficiencies and innovations, from the cotton gin to the sewing machine, that have powered societal development. But author and entrepreneur Ed Chambliss argues that, as societies grow more prosperous, an overemphasis on business efficiency – as embodied by the concept of shareholder primacy – is no longer enough. He urges businesses in developed countries to broaden their focus to include all their stakeholders' diverse needs – and encourages businesses in developing countries to adopt this broader definition of sustainable success.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship
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Finding Value in Food Losses and Byproducts: Why Circular Agribusiness is Key to Sustainable Food Security in Africa
Food waste and spoilage are major problems in Africa: For example, between 25% and 44% of mangoes are lost across the value chain in Kenya. Brenda Wangari at Village Capital and Patrick Guyer at Bopinc discuss an innovative solution to this challenge: circular agribusinesses that turn food waste and byproducts into affordable, nutritious foods and organic fertilizers. They explain how the O-Farms program, Africa’s first accelerator focusing entirely on circular agribusiness, is supporting these enterprises, and how this approach can help ensure food security on the continent.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Entrepreneurship
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Pushing the Water Boundaries: How Social Impact Incentives Can Make WASH Enterprises More Innovative, Impactful and Catalytic
The water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) sector is ripe for change, as it is far from being on track to achieve universal access to safe drinking water (SDG 6). According to Shabana Abbas at Aqua for All, and Bjoern Struewer and Patrizia Baffioni at Roots of Impact, impact entrepreneurs can drive the sector forward, but their funders will need to move away from the usual grant models to explore more innovative and sustainable financing approaches. They discuss one such model – Social Impact Incentives – and how it's being applied successfully to support WASH enterprises.
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- Entrepreneurship, Finance, WASH
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Leading the Way to Greater Impact: Why Addressing the Lack of Lead Investors is Key to Building Stronger Startups in Emerging Markets
Raising capital is a critically important function for startups. But as Patricia Chin-Sweeney at Beyond Capital Ventures explains, there is typically a shortage of investors who are willing to lead an investment round – and until a lead is secured, the process of capital raising is in limbo. And unfortunately, many startup founders are unaware of this, wasting precious time speaking to funders who cannot lead the round. She explores the value that a lead investor role can provide to both startups and investors, and discusses the need for more lead investors in Africa and other emerging markets.
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- Entrepreneurship, Investing
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Resolving the Core Tension of Impact-Focused Fintech: A Viable Model for Reaching Rural Women with Digital Financial Services
Reaching last-mile communities is challenging for a business that also has to attend to its own bottom line. Claudia Sosa Lazo at IDEO.org discusses a partnership between IDEO.org, BRAC, bKash and the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics that is seeking profitable ways to bring digital financial services to rural women in Bangladesh. She explains how the partnership provides a model for other businesses and NGOs that hope to unlock both profit and social impact, while bringing beneficial products to the world’s most excluded communities.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Finance, Technology
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Business Solutions to a Humanitarian Crisis: Nine Things Companies Must Understand to Support Refugees from Ukraine – And Around the World
As war rages in Ukraine, humanitarian efforts have struggled to keep pace with the needs of the refugees displaced by the conflict. According to Betsy Alley, an independent researcher and analyst with expertise in refugee business investment, the private sector can help. But how can businesses best contribute to something that has traditionally been a humanitarian affair? She shares nine learnings from the refugee crises of recent years, which show how enterprises and their employees can serve and empower refugees while also benefiting host communities – and their own businesses.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Investing
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In Defense of Wealth Creators: Why Globalization, Outsourcing – And Rich People – Are a Good Thing for Developed and Emerging Economies
International trade breaks down borders and provides societal and economic advancements in countries around the world. But as Derek Bullen at S.i. Systems points out, despite these benefits, there's a widespread perception that the businesses and individuals that drive this globalized, free market system only bring wealth to themselves. He argues that criticisms of globalization – and the outsourcing and wealth concentration it involves – are fundamentally flawed, and explains how wealthy individuals and their businesses benefit both affluent and emerging economies.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship
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Implementing Effective Innovation Challenges: Three Lessons from the Last Mile Distribution Sector
Last mile distributors (LMDs) are key to bringing life-changing products to hard-to-reach consumers, and innovation is essential to their work. But as Emma Colenbrander and Charlotte Taylor at the Global Distributors Collective and Gerwin Jansen at Bopinc explain, these innovations are often not replicated, leading LMDs to spend time and resources reinventing the wheel. They explore how innovation challenges can foster greater replicability and inclusivity, and share three key insights for LMDs and other businesses and organizations working to support innovation at the last mile.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Technology
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