NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

’Drop out of school’: Does That Advice Work in South Africa?

By Osiame Molefe Cape Town, South Africa Like many other black South African parents, my folks were non-negotiable on one thing: that my siblings and I, at the very minimum, go to university and graduate. They worked slavishly, too, to make it happen. I’m sure many other South African parents held and continue to hold the ...

Source

The Christian Science Monitor (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Google Exec. Wael Ghonim Takes Sabbatical to Fight Poverty

Wael Ghonim never sought to become the public face of the Egyptian revolution. But the Google executive who helped organize the political uprising on social media was thrust into the spotlight in February after he was arrested and beaten by government forces during the protests that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak. Since then, Ghonim has been traveling the globe to spread word of Revolution 2.0, tapping the power of the Internet and social media to foment revolution. He has...

Source

Los Angeles Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

North Africa & Near East

Sam Pitroda To Deliver Keynote Address At Sankalp 2011

Mumbai, Maharashtra, April 28, 2011 / India PRwire / -- Mr. Sam Pitroda, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations, and Chairman of the National Innovation Council is scheduled address over 500 social enterprise enthusiasts at the 3rd Annual Sankalp Social Enterprise and Investment Forum (www.sankalpforum.com), scheduled for May 5-6 at Taj Lands End in ...

Source

India PRWire (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

Paymate, IFMR tie up to drive financial inclusion

Paymate, India’s leading mobile payments company, and IFMR Rural Finance, have announced a tie-up to launch multiple financial inclusion projects through Kshetriya Gramin Financial Services (KGFS) entities. As a part of this initiative, the company has unveiled a mobile phone based person-to-person money transfer initiative in the Delhi to Uttarakhand corridor as well as piloted a micro-loan repayments in villages in Ganjam, Orissa. Commenting on the launch of these initiatives, Aja...

Source

Business Standard (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

GE Remodels Businesses in India

BANGALORE, India-As General Electric Co. assessed the lingering impact of the global financial crisis, it saw that some emerging markets-chief among them India-had come through the trauma better than the developed world. The Fairfield, Conn., company has been in India for more than a century, but it revamped its operations there only a few years ago to tap into the country’s large consumer m...

Source

The Wall Street Journal (link opens in a new window)

Categories

Uncategorized

Region

South Asia

Tags

scale

Amit Bhatia’s Aspire: Matching Rural Workers With Jobs

BIG IDEA: To supply India’s booming economy with millions of young workers who come from rural and disadvantaged backgrounds. Bhatia’s company, Aspire, trains high-school and college students to become English-speaking, tech-savvy, problem-solving whiz kids ready for hire. The company then connects students to jobs, often in the technology and service sectors, at major corporations such as IBM, Accenture, Wipro, and Infosys. This year, Aspire will work with rough...

Source

Fast Company (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

FMCG Firms Bank On Higher Volumes In Rural Market

NEW DELHI: Aiming for a deeper penetration in rural markets, FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) majors, including Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Britannia, are introducing products in low price points particularly in the Rs 5 category as part of their strategy to shore up volumes. While global beverages firm Coca-Cola has introduced ’Fanta Fun Taste’ powder sachet for Rs 5 targeting the lower end of the market, Pepsico had also recently brought out 200 ml bottle for Rs 5 for its popular ...

Source

The Economic Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

Inclusion Banking to Turn Into Profits Soon: Union Bank

MUMBAI, APR 24: Union Bank of India, the fifth largest public sector lender with over Rs 3.55 lakh crore in assets, has said its financial inclusion project, called the ’new bankable class’, will turn profitable sooner than expected. "Going by our experience with the financial inclusion project, which we call ’banking for the new bankable class’, this will turn in profits sooner than later, especially when the cash transfer facilities under Adhaar s...

Source

The Hindu (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia