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NextBillion's weekly e-newsletter is designed to be a crib sheet for anyone interested in exploring the connection between development and enterprise. It offers a snapshot of our offerings, including links to the most thought-provoking posts, compelling quotes, photos and other highlights from the week on NextBillion.
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- Social Enterprise
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Storming the Walls – How Mozambique’s ‘Citadel Economy’ Shapes Financial Inclusion
In Mozambique, the combination of infrastructure deficit caused by colonial neglect and civil war, a centralist political economy, the sheer scale of poverty, and limited formal sector employment opportunities creates sharp income inequalities and shapes a "citadel economy," where high walls separate those inside and outside the enclave. This keeps financial service providers from reaching excluded target markets in the informal and agrarian economy. Christine Hougaard at Cenfri explores the problem and its potential solutions.
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Opportunity International and MyBucks: ‘A Powerful Partnership to Improve More Lives’
Opportunity International's sale of six microfinance banks to the fintech company MyBucks has sparked extensive analysis in recent days - along with some serious concerns. In this article, Opportunity CEO Vicki Escarra responds to the criticisms of the partnership leveled by former MFTransparency CEO Chuck Waterfield in his recent NextBillion post.
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‘Ahead of the Curve’ – Three Companies Get Serious About Measuring Customers’ Financial Health
It is easy to track the number of active checking accounts or the number of dollars lent on credit cards. It is much harder to measure if those checking accounts and credit cards are actually helping customers manage their money better. To help financial services providers get serious about measuring their impact, CFSI recently released eight key indicators of financial health, and profiled three companies that are ahead of the curve in understanding customer outcomes.
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A Quick, Simple Malaria Test, and Why It Matters
What problems does a noninvasive, simple test for malaria solve? According to Fyodor, the makers of just such a test which retails for about $2, it can help curb the issues of inappropriate treatment, over-treatment, self-medication or presumptive treatment.
- Categories
- Health Care
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Opportunity International and MyBucks: The Future of Digital Microfinance?
Back in November 2015, to little fanfare, microfinance pioneer Opportunity International agreed to sell six banks serving sub-Saharan Africa to the MyBucks Group, a Luxembourg-based fintech company. By all accounts, this should have been bigger news, as it touches upon many of the topics and trends that are reshaping the microfinance sector, from the role of fintech to the question of responsible exits. Daniel Rozas and Gabriela Erice García explore the very real opportunities and challenges generated by this deal.
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- Uncategorized
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Handle With Care: How to Maximize the Value of Microinsurance for Emerging Consumers
Intuitively, microinsurance is well-suited to managing some of the financial risks faced by emerging consumers. Yet insurance penetration in emerging economies is very low. Should insurance not be playing a substantially bigger risk management role for people at the base of the pyramid?
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- microfinance, research
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The Podcast: When Life Hits You In the Head With a Brick …
Max Chinnah, CEO and co-founder of Terraoak Inc., is from Nigeria, where his grandmother died from complications related to breathing air polluted by cookstoves. He's convinced his Genesys Cooker can improve the lives of millions around the world.
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- Health Care, Social Enterprise
