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Win $9,000 in Tickets to Social Impact Events: Enter SOCAP’s 2018 Impact Passport Giveaway
Whether you are an early-stage social entrepreneur or just exploring the world of social entrepreneurship, conscious business or impact investing, here's an amazing deal for you: SOCAP's 2018 Impact Passport giveaway offers the opportunity to go to several of the premier events in the social impact calendar this year - for free. The winner of the sweepstakes will receive a suite of conference tickets, media consultations and subscriptions with a total value of approximately $9,000.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise
- Tags
- impact investing
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From New York to Madagascar: Why I Moved My Fintech Startup to Africa
“Everyone has a plan ‘till they get punched in the mouth.” That Mike Tyson quote rang true for Sidharth Garg, who was forced to go back to the drawing board after his Manhattan-based fintech startup's chatbot failed to engage customers. But that setback soon became an opportunity: Garg explains how shifting focus from the U.S. to Madagascar set the company on a new path to growth, in the latest post in NextBillion's "Course Correction in Social Enterprise" series.
- Categories
- Finance, Social Enterprise
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Supporting the ‘Safe Journey’: How Mobile Tech is Making Migration More Secure and Less Costly
In Nepal’s rural areas, foreign employment in wealthy economies like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and South Korea can be a huge economic opportunity. But migrants to these countries are often exploited by employment brokers and others, who take advantage of the complexity of the migration process to charge high fees for job placements or loans. Benjamin Lokshin at the Asia Foundation discusses the foundation's innovative 'Shuvayatra' platform, which leverages mobile tools to help bridge the gaps between migrants and providers of important services.
- Categories
- Finance
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The Ben & Jerry of Africa: A Transformation That’s Coming Sooner Than You Think
In the last three decades, China has pulled a half billion people out of poverty, and India has pulled another half billion. It won’t be long before Africa does the same, says serial entrepreneur Luni Libes. And when it does, those 500 million new middle class consumers will want the comforts that come with a decent income – including treats like ice cream. Libes explores what this coming transformation will mean for Africa's next generation of entrepreneurs.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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For Solar Irrigation to Grow, the Pump Needs to be Innovative – So Does the Warranty
Helen Davies at Futurepump writes that the startup has developed a cost-effective, solar-based pump to irrigate crops that is simple to use and maintain, and designed specifically with small rural farms in mind. The firm has already sold 4,000 units and is distributing in 11 African and Asian countries. But beyond the technology, an equally important innovation is the company's five-year warranty on the product, which Davies says is an industry first. She makes the case that solar device makers operating in low-income markets need to stand behind their products with warrantees and service, if customers are going to trust the technology and the manufacturers.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Energy, Technology
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Maximizing Technology’s Social Impact: 10th ICT4D Conference Coming May 8-10
The 10th ICT4D Conference is the largest event of its kind in the global development sector. This year's event, happening May 8-10 in Lusaka, Zambia, aims to map out the path for technology to make the maximum impact on improving humanitarian relief and development work, bringing together over 600 ICT experts, program managers and senior executives from 80 countries. NextBillion is a media partner of the event, and our readers can get a discount on registration.
- Categories
- Technology
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Is Universal Financial Access Still Possible?
The most recent Global Findex survey shows 515 million adults have opened bank accounts since 2014. While that's good progress, Daniel Monehin, who heads Financial Inclusion for Mastercard, points out that owning an account is just the first step towards financial inclusion - the real value comes with being able to use it in a safe and convenient way. That's why universal financial access must go hand-in-hand with efforts to drive usage, writes Monehin, who urges the sector to focus on people, products and partnerships.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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A Test Case for Digital Leap-Frogging: What the Financial Inclusion Community Can Learn from Vietnam
With its rapid economic expansion, large unbanked population, high mobile penetration and progressive regulations, Vietnam has the potential to leap-frog over brick-and-mortar banking and arrive directly at the forefront of digital finance. Krishna Thacker of MetLife Foundation in Asia profiles an emerging innovator in the country's mobile payments space, and explores lessons learned in driving the uptake of digital financial services.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
