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Gender: The Blind Spot of the COVID-19 Response in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
The COVID-19 pandemic is imposing a disproportionately higher socio-economic cost on women. As Melinda Gates put it, “COVID-19 is gender-blind, but not gender-neutral.” Analysts at MSC discuss four potential types of fallout from COVID-19 that will have lasting socio-economic impacts on women in India and other low- and middle-income countries, based on multiple studies that MSC conducted between March and July of this year.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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Researching Outside the Box: The Benefits and Challenges of Systems Practice for Engaged Ecosystem Research
In its research on the tech innovation ecosystems in Cape Town, Nairobi and Lagos, Cenfri applied a Systems Practice approach, collaborating with key players to reveal a comprehensive picture of these dynamic systems. Analysts at Cenfri and Lagos Business School explore the model, and the challenges and considerable advantages it presents for researchers and business ecosystems.
- Categories
- Finance, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Can Agile Fintech Startups Be the Answer To Food Insecurity During the COVID-19 Crisis?
COVID-19 lockdowns have threatened small and medium enterprises and vulnerable families around the world. And as Malika Anand and Michelle Hassan at BFA Global point out, inclusive fintech startups are often better-placed than aid agencies to support communities and businesses in urban settlements during the pandemic. They explore how one innovative startup, Sokowatch, has developed a quick and effective way to fight food insecurity in Kibera, Nairobi – while also supporting small local retailers.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
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Maintaining a Critical Link To Last-Mile Customers: Challenges and Opportunities Facing Financial Service Agents During COVID-19
Agents are a critical last-mile link to financial services for lower-income households and micro- and small enterprises. But as the COVID-19 crisis has spread globally, it has had a profound effect on how agents operate, introducing new restrictions – and new responsibilities. Nisha Singh and James Robinson at Itad explore the findings from a recent report that highlights key strategies for building and managing high-performing agent networks despite the challenges of the pandemic.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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COVID-19: Burden or Boon for Financial Inclusion?
When the Alliance for Financial Inclusion outlined its “Five Key Financial Inclusion Policy Trends for 2020” on January 17 of this year, the spread of the novel coronavirus was still in its infancy. Now that COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on the global economy, Robin Newnham at the Alliance for Financial Inclusion revisits those trends, viewing them through the prism of the pandemic – and finding both new risks, and new opportunities.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
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Youth Saving and Spending During COVID-19: Tracking Young People’s Financial Activity in Nigeria
How are young people in Africa saving and spending money during COVID-19, when many of their previous sources of income have disappeared? Mahlet Alemayehu at L-IFT shares the results of a study in which 117 young people living in Nigeria kept a record of their savings and spending over several months. The data can help financial service providers anticipate how young people will need to use their accounts, and determine what other services they may need as they navigate the challenges of the pandemic.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
- Tags
- COVID-19, financial inclusion, research, savings, youth
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A New Mission for an Old Model: Unlocking Sustainable Water Through Savings Groups
To achieve universal access to clean water and sanitation by 2030, the world will need to quadruple spending to $150 billion per year. Given this financing gap, every investment in clean water counts. Yet according to Chris Prottas at The Water Trust, an estimated one out of three rural water points are broken across Sub-Saharan Africa, and the traditional community-led maintenance approach isn't working. He explores a promising solution: adapting the savings group model to provide sustainable water access.
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Optimizing Incremental Building: Why the Answer To Decent, Affordable Housing for All Is Hidden in Plain Sight
The scale of the global housing challenge is enormous, with an estimated 1.6 billion people worldwide lacking adequate shelter. As a huge percentage of homebuilders around the world build incrementally, analysts at Habitat for Humanity’s Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter explore how optimizing the incremental building process could present an effective solution.
- Categories
- Environment, Finance
- Tags
- housing, innovation, manufacturing