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From Early Adopters to Tech Laggards: Understanding Off-Grid Energy Customers
The team at 60 Decibels recently set out to understand the motivations of customers served by off-grid energy firms in Africa. Researchers quizzed customers in Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia about their attitudes and behaviours toward new products to find out who were the early innovators, early adopters or tech laggards. Kat Harrison and Hassan Nasser of 60 Decibels explain the research and how firms can convert ambivalent customers into product ambassadors.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Impact Assessment, Technology
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Financial Inclusion Week: Reflection and Action from Three Leading Voices
Today, the Center for Financial Inclusion is wrapping up Financial Inclusion Week. The intention for the week was to ask some soul-searching questions about what it means to be inclusive – and about how financial access in the age of fintech can impact the lives of millions, for good or ill. We caught up with three leading voices in the field, asking each of them three key questions focused on what financial inclusion means to them from a personal, organizational and international standpoint.
- Categories
- Finance, Impact Assessment, Investing, Technology
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RSF-Purpose Initiative Responds to Demand for Mission-First Business Models
A grassroots global movement is emerging behind mission-first business models rooted in stakeholder governance—rather than shareholder control—and RSF Social Finance and the Purpose Foundation are collaborating to help that movement grow. Today they released a report that serves as a handbook for companies exploring alternative business structures and financing.
- Categories
- Environment, Finance, Investing, Technology
- Tags
- business development, ESG, research, scale
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A New How-To Guide Chronicles Food and Water Innovators
It's challenging enough to start a business in mature markets, but just try running one in a rural community in a developing country with poor roads and customers who can't pay you. “Innovator Guidebook: Navigating Business Models for the Base of the Pyramid in Water and Energy for Food," highlights lessons from innovators funded by the five-year Securing Water for Food Grand Challenge. The online resource was unveiled today at SOCAP.
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- Agriculture, Education, Energy, Technology
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Kenyan telco Safaricom’s Alpha incubator faces uncertain future
Safaricom’s Nairobi-based Alpha innovation incubator may have an uncertain future, according to sources - TechCrunch reports.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- incubators
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Amazon Pay Users in India Can Now Pay Their Utility, Mobile and Cable Bills With Alexa
To be sure, Amazon has long allowed users in many markets to purchase items using voice command with Alexa. But this is the first time the American company is letting users pay their electricity, water, cooking gas, broadband and satellite TV bills with voice and Amazon Pay.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- e-commerce
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TikTok Makes Education Push in India
The social platform, which is used by more than 200 million users in India every month, said its education program is aimed at “democratizing learning for the Indian digital community on the platform.” (TikTok had 120 million monthly active users in April this year.)
- Categories
- Education, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- edtech
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Southeast Asia’s Booming Internet Economy to Boost Fintech Growth
In the e-Conomy SEA Report 2019, released earlier this month, the companies say that the region’s Internet economy has hit a new milestone, reaching US$100 billion for the first time this year, corresponding to a 39% increase from 2018. The sector is on track to hit US$300 billion in 2025, the report says.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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