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Four Lessons Utility Providers Can Learn from the Financial Inclusion Sector
Over 1 billion people lack reliable access to essential services like sanitation, potable water and electricity - and reaching them remains a stubborn challenge. But as Jacob Winiecki and Malika Anand at BFA point out, the financial inclusion industry has learned a lot about how to serve low-income customers in remote communities. They share four key lessons in this thought-provoking article.
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Weathering a Perfect Storm – Part 2: Seven Ways Fintechs Can Survive the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to the financial services industry – particularly in emerging markets. In the second article of this two-part series, analysts at MSC explore seven key measures fintechs are taking to stay relevant, augment their recovery and build their resilience during the crisis.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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Weathering a Perfect Storm – Part 1: The Challenges Facing Fintechs in Emerging Markets During COVID-19
Fintechs have proven their potential to deliver financial services to low- and middle-income customers in emerging markets. But even the most innovative approaches can fail in an economy devastated by COVID-19. In this article – the first in a two-part series – analysts at MSC explore the challenges and opportunities the pandemic brings to the fintech sector.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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Risk vs. Resilience: Insuring Sustainable African Cities in the Age of Climate Change
Though COVID-19 dominates the global conversation, climate change continues to have devastating effects. For instance, there were 53 climate-related disasters in Africa in 2018 alone – and these challenges are likely to get worse as the continent urbanizes. Kate Rinehart-Smit and Mia Thom at Cenfri suggest four interventions that can help insurers protect African cities and infrastructure against climate disasters.
- Categories
- Environment, Finance
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A Digital Approach to Reducing Educational Inequality in Africa – During and After COVID-19
As COVID-19 spreads through sub-Saharan Africa, its long-term impact on children's education is becoming clear, as over 253 million students are not in school due to closures caused by the crisis. Wambura Kimunyu at Eneza discusses the company's innovative platform, which provides educational content via SMS texts – and how it's working to expand access to the platform in response to the pandemic.
- Categories
- Education, Technology
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Stronger Together: Why MIX and the Center for Financial Inclusion are Joining Forces
Yesterday came news that two key players in financial inclusion are joining forces: MIX, for nearly 20 years the chief data resource for inclusive finance, and the Center for Financial Inclusion, a leading independent think tank housed at Accion. Tillman Bruett at DAI and Greta Bull at CGAP discuss the significance of this merger for the organizations and the sector.
- Categories
- Finance
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Scaling Big Data for Social Good: Weighing the Benefits and the Risks
Each day, the world generates about 2.5 quintillion bytes of data, and the entire digital universe is expected to hit 44 zettabytes this year. According to Hayden Dahmm at SDSN TReNDS, this data can provide major benefits if it's shared between the public and private sectors – but the risks are equally significant, particularly in emerging markets. He explores how to ensure that big data is used safely and ethically.
- Categories
- Technology, Telecommunications, Transportation
- Tags
- public policy
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The Blind Spot in Africa’s COVID-19 Response: Western Public Health Tactics Won’t Work – This Local Solution Might
The COVID-19 pandemic is primed to spread in Africa, and with just one doctor per 5,000 people, a major outbreak would overwhelm the continent’s health care systems. But as Anatole Manzi at Partners In Health points out, tactics like social distancing and hand-washing are not feasible in crowded slums and areas without clean water. He proposes a home-grown solution: training young people as community health workers.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Health Care
- Tags
- COVID-19, public health