NextBillion - A WDI Publication

From Reeds to Roads: Bamboo Bikes in Ghana

When Columbia University professor John Mutter went to Ghana in 2007, he noticed how necessary a reliable source of transportation was to people’s livelihoods and wellbeing. "You can’t go to any of the poorer countries in Africa and not be struck by how many people get around by walking or bicycling," said Mutter. With roads in generally poor condition, it can take a long time to get from place to place, he said. Even the seemingly simple task of getting cash crops to mark...

Source

PBS Newshour (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Nigeria: Global Malaria Control – It’s Time to Cast Down the Net

Maybe as her own demonstration of love during the Valentine season, the First Lady of Nigeria - Dame Patience Jonathan on Sunday February 13, 2011 turned a portion of Aso Rock into a repository for insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) that were subsequently distributed to some categories of Nigerian women. Her love gift is one out of the numerous efforts by various individuals, groups, communities, societies, agencies, governments, stakeholders and non stakeholders alike, in the fight agains...

Source

allAfrica.com (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

For Pepsi, a Business Decision With Social Benefit

SAN GABRIEL, Mexico - In the past, farmers would make the dangerous trek north from this tiny town hidden in the rugged folds of the Jalisco mountain range to the United States, hoping to earn enough money doing odd jobs to cover debts incurred while cultivating the small plots of land that have been in their families for generations. But more recently, many have managed to avoid the trips, staying home as the result of a new venture with ...

Source

The New York Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Latin America

Zimbabwe: Fewer Extramarital Partners and Dollars Push Precipitous Decline in H.I.V. Rate

Defying expectations in a region devastated by AIDS , rates of H.I.V. infection in Zimbabwe have fallen precipitously in the last decade. In 1997, an estimated 29 percent of adults were infected. A decade later, 16 percent were. The basic explanation is simple, according to ...

Source

The New York Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Rwanda: Bloodless male circumcision to boost HIV prevention

The Rwandan government plans to expand its national voluntary male circumcision programme using a new device, the PrePex system, which officials say saves both time and money. The PrePex system works through a special elastic mechanism that fits closely around an inner ring, trapping the foreskin, which dries up and is removed after a week. A study conducted by the Rwandan Ministries of Defence and Health in 2010 found the device to be safe and effective. "Yo...

Source

IRIN Global (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Mobile Apps Competition Puts Women Online in the Developing World

Vodafone is sponsoring a competition to encourage developers to build mobile apps for women in developing countries. The GSMA mWomen ’Base of the Pyramid’ apps challenge competition aims to address the needs of the 300 million women in developing countries who are not yet connected to a mobile device. The competition was open to original applications from software development companies producing ’feature’ and smartphone applications aligned to the socio-economic be...

Source

ComputerWeekly.com (link opens in a new window)

Why Muhammad Yunus and the Poor Need Us More than Ever

In the past weeks, Nobel Peace prize winner Muhammad Yunus has been under attack by not only his the leader of the government in his native Bangladesh but by those people and organizations who are upset with what narrows down to Dr Yunus’ stand against corruption and loan sharking. Basically here is what it comes down to: greed and corrupt power versus truly helping the poor to help themselves. Anyone who has spent time with Dr Yunus, and everyone I have spoken to over the pas...

Source

The Huffington Post (link opens in a new window)

Movirtu Awarded Contract with Airtel Madagascar

Movirtu, the leading provider of Mobile Identity Management (MIM) solutions to wireless telecommunication service providers, announced today a contract with Airtel Madagascar to implement the Movirtu Cloud Phone services nationwide in Madagascar. The main channel for purchase will be the Village Phone Operators (VPOs) with whom the service has been piloted. Airtel has a stated goal to attract new subscribers from rural areas in Madagascar. 70% of rural consumers do not have acces...

Source

Neondrum (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa