NextBillion - A WDI Publication

The Spectacular Mobile Phone Revolution in Africa

Mobile phone service is gaining by leaps and bounds in Africa. Indeed, so many Africans have subscribed to wireless service that the continent is now the second-largest market in the world - having supplanted Latin America -- and behind only Asia, the top market. The expansion of mobile phones is likely to revolutionize Africa, a land plagued by poverty, disease, war...

Source

International Business Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

HBL to Launch Branchless Banking

Islamabad-HBL has inked a Technology Support agreement with Sybase 365, the global leader in mobile messaging and mobile commerce services, and Abacus Consulting, a leading management and technology consultancy firm for the deployment of branchless banking services. Mr. Faiq Sadiq, Head-Payment Services and Mr. Mudassir Khan, Chief Information Officer from HBL, Mr. Mathew Talbot, Senior Vice President, mCommerce and Tarik Husain, Business Development Director, mCommerce from Sybase 365 and Mr...

Source

Pakistan Observer (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

More Health for the Money

Aid from wealthy countries to fight disease and poverty in the developing world has saved countless lives over the past decade. Despite intensified financial efforts toward global health goals, progress seems to be impeded and slow as the 2015 deadline for achieving the Millennium Development Goals draws near. A recent study by the OECD Development Assistance Committee ...

Source

Devex (link opens in a new window)

Accel Partners Raises $155M for New India Venture Fund

Accel Partners, which has backed global Internet majors like Facebook and Groupon, has raised a new $155 million venture capital fund that will invest in seed and early-stage investments in India. Accel India III is nearly two-and-a-half times its predecessor, Accel India Venture Fund II, which raised $60 million three years ago. With the inception of the new fund, the assets under management of Accel India will reach $235 million across its three early-stage funds. "The fund has ...

Source

VCCircle (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

Microcredit – Women Demand More Than Incomes

VALLADOLID, Spain, Nov 16, 2011 (IPS) - Microcredit can help a woman to have an income. It can, for better or worse, also transform gender equations in the public and private spheres. Making microfinance more meaningful for women in terms of real empowerment occupies much of the deliberations at the Fifth Global Microcredit Summit underway in this Spanish city. Apparently, not all microcredit institutions (MFIs) are aware of the importance of contribu...

Source

IPS (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

?Challenges and Solutions? on Day Two of the Global Microcredit Summit

"What’s the one thing you know for sure about clients of microfinance?" This was the question with which the lead author of a new paper, Anton Simanowitz, began the plenary session on day two of the Global Microcredit Summit 2011. "The answer", he said, "is that at some point, they will suffer a shock beyond what they can cope with; and which is greater than their incomes". How MFIs understanding this fact, face up to it, plan for it, determines whether microfinance has ...

Source

Microfinance Focus (link opens in a new window)

Region

Europe & Eurasia

PepsiCo Counters Inflation with Small Packs, Low Cost Items

NEW DELHI: With high inflation making consumers think twice before spending, food and beverages major PepsiCo is turning to measures like reducing pack sizes and introducing very low priced items in order to keep sales volume counter ticking in India. Despite hiking prices, the company is confident that steps like launching products specifically for bottom of pyramid consumers as well as for the premium-end segment will help it strike a balance between volumes and value. ...

Source

The Economic Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

South Asia

A Netflix for Batteries to Get Africa on the Grid

Around the world nearly 2 billion people don’t have reliable access to electricity. We’ve covered some of the inspiring plans and products aiming to compensate for that by making solar power cheap enough for off-grid homes in the developing world. But in Tanzania, where just 14 percent of peopl...

Source

Fast Company (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa