Articles by Kyla Yeoman
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Wednesday
April 17
2013Connected: Unleashing Ugandan Farmers’ Potential Through Mobile Phones
A powerful, new mobile platform designed for smallholder farmers that combines agriculture information and financial services to help them harvest bigger profits is going live in Uganda. Modeled on the cloud-based AgriLife, the new platform will be accessible via mobile phone and provide data collection and analysis about farmers’ production capability and history, while providing much-needed services to distant, rural farmers.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
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Guest Articles
Thursday
December 27
2012Using Street Vendors to Improve Children’s Health: An Innovative Solution to Malnutrition
In the urban slums of Jakarta, young kids are getting enriched, healthy nutrition from an unusual place: franchised food carts. KeBAL street food carts have grown from a small nutrition project piloted by Mercy Corps, to a thriving social enterprise with partners like DSM, the global leader in micronutrients. In this interview, DSM and Mercy Corps discuss the partnership and KeBAL’s innovative approach.
- Categories
- Health Care, Social Enterprise
- Tags
- nutrition, public health
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Monday
December 10
2012Tiendas de la Salud: A Microfranchise Health Store Launches in Guatemala
Tiendas de la Salud is part of the micro-franchise business model set up by Mercy Corps and the Linked Foundation, now owned by Farmacias de la Comunidad. Microfranchise models, broadly defined, are small businesses run by entrepreneurs at the base of the socio-economic pyramid that can be easily operated and replicated. In TISA’s case, entrepreneurs own and manage local microfranchise health stores, filling a badly needed public health and market niche.
- Categories
- Health Care
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Thursday
November 15
2012Inside Microinsurance: Why Insuring Female Micro-entrepreneurs has a Ripple Effect
Through MiCRO, a reinsurance company formed in March 2011 by Mercy Corps and Fonkoze with SwissRe, female microentrepreneurs will receive an insurance payout triggered by hurricanes Isaac and Sandy high winds and heavy rains to replace goods and repair damaged businesses. The product can be tailored to the needs of whatever client organization we’re working with and the people they serve.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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Thursday
September 6
2012When Tropical Storm Isaac Hit, Microinsurance Payouts to Haiti’s Small Business Owners Quickly Followed
Through a for-profit reinsurance company called MiCRO (Microinsurance Catastrophe Risk Organisation), formed in March 2011 by the global humanitarian agency Mercy Corps and Haiti’s largest microfinance institution Fonkoze, female microentrepreneurs who hold policies will have their loans cancelled and receive a $125 USD payout to replace damaged inventory or repair homes or businesses.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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Thursday
May 24
2012Lighting a Pathway for Solar in Rural Uganda
Mercy Corps didn’t give out a single solar lantern. It didn’t give out any grants to buy solar panels. But, what the international nonprofit did do was bring solar to rural Uganda.How? Market facilitation. It’s a mouthful, but it’s kind of like matchmaking, and it’s a key role nonprofits can play to boost local economies.
- Categories
- Energy
- Tags
- solar, supply chains