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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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Analysis: Digital Technology Is Stimulating Financial Inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa
The widespread usage of digital technology in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is an essential phenomenon that fosters productivity in the digital economy and integrates markets in the region.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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An Emerging Cornerstone of Last-Mile Distribution: The Power of Data and Process Digitalization
Social enterprises at the last mile are working relentlessly to close the gap in achieving the SDGs. But since their customers are generally underprivileged, they're also very sensitive to a product’s price, which means boosting efficiency is key to increasing these businesses' profitability. Thibault Lesueur and Simon Schaffner at Solaris Offgrid explore how process digitalization and interoperable software systems can streamline last-mile distribution and help these enterprises scale.
- Categories
- Energy, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Press Release: Mastercard Brings Technology Leaders Together To Launch Tech for Good Partnership in Latin America
Bancolombia, Banco Galicia, Citibanamex, Mercado Libre, and PayPal Commit to Accelerate Business Recovery and Inclusive Growth Efforts in the Region
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Investing, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
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Whatsapp Partners With Common Services Centers for a Digital Literacy Service Chatbot
The government describes CSC as a 'strategic cornerstone' of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), approved by the government in May 2006, as part of its commitment in the National Common Minimum Programme to introduce e-governance on a massive scale.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Flipping the Script: Why Small and Growing Businesses Should Lead the Researchers – Not the Other Way Around
All too often, global development research hinges on the interest of researchers, rather than the knowledge needs of small and growing businesses and their impacted communities. This can leave entrepreneurs with plenty of reports, but no practical tools for continuing to collect and use data themselves. Analysts at the William Davidson Institute, Gente Del Futuro, Practical Action and ANDE propose a better approach: letting small businesses lead the way.
- Categories
- Technology
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Analysis: How AI Can Help Developing Countries Rebuild After the Pandemic
Technology has been a lifeline to developing countries during the COVID-19 crisis, helping to maintain essential services and keep companies in business. It has also offered a glimpse of a brighter future, one in which gains in income and employment are driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Technology
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Press Release: X4Impact, a Market Intelligence Platform for Social Innovation, Announced U.S. Launch During the 2020 Un General Assembly
As we enter a post-COVID-19 recovery phase, the free-access platform aims to spark the creation and funding of technologies to address our most urgent social issues mapped to UN Sustainable Development Goals.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Technology
- Tags
- global development, SDGs
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