NextBillion - A WDI Publication

Remittances Dwarf Aid, Investment in Kenya

Kenyans in the diaspora are contributing an equivalent of 3.8 per cent of national income through remittances. In the year 2004, for instance, Kenyans living and working abroad remitted about Ksh35 billion ($464 million), which overshadows the net foreign direct investment (FDI) of Ksh3.6 billion ($50.4 million), which accounted for 0.41 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product. Migration is an important issue in Kenya, with the country both a significant destin...

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The East African (Nairobi), Philip Ngunjiri (link opens in a new window)

BARCELONA (Dow Jones) -- The phenomenal growth of mobile phone subscriptions in countries like India and Sudan is putting pressure on infrastructure and handset providers to start tailoring some of their products to these emerging markets. Of course, demand for mobile phones in India, China, Eastern Europe and Africa is not a new phenomenon. But until recently, the likes of Motorola and Nokia were more focused on producing fancier phones in their battle for market share in...

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Dow Jones Newswire (link opens in a new window)

Mobile phone industry targets the Third World

With a saturated market in Western Europe and North America and a user base adopting costly new third-generation features at a seemingly glacial pace, the mobile phone industry is turning to the Third World and asking the heads of developing countries to lift regulatory barriers. According to Motorola CEO Ed Zander, addressing a forum at the 3GSM World Congress here Wednesday (Feb. 15), mobile phone penetration is a powerful engine for economic growth. He said, ?Every time you have ten ...

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52rd.com (link opens in a new window)

Fancy Phones to Clash with Low-Cost PCs

New research shows that in India, the future high-volume groups are in two ranges ? the sub-$40 and $60-100 sets Pragya Singh Here is something the bottom of India?s mobile user pyramid can cheer about. If 2005 was the year of the cheap PC, 2006 will see the dawn of entry-level smart phones in rural parts. While the low cost PC can still put you down Rs 10,000 ($200), new intelligent phones in the $45 range will be out by Q4 2006. Vendors making the Silicon chips tha...

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Financial Express (link opens in a new window)

The world’s largest chip manufacturer is hiring, but the resumes it wants might surprise you.

Why is Intel, the giant chip maker, in the process of hiring more than 100 anthropologists and other social scientists to work side by side with its engineers? While the success of this strategy will become clearer over the next 12 to 18 months, it’s obvious Intel is betting that sales will rise and new markets will emerge because of this nonintuitive pairing. .... Intel has already released several products shaped by anthropological research. In February 2005, it worked wit...

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Technology Review (link opens in a new window)

Free HIV Tests Bring Dramatic Results in Tanzania

Eliminating even modest fees for HIV testing can greatly increase the number of those tested in Tanzania and thereby enhance Aids-prevention efforts, US researchers have said. In a two-week pilot programme, the daily average of people tested for HIV at a clinic in Moshi jumped from four to 15 when the standard test fee of Tsh1,000 ($0.95) was waived, according to a study by Duke University Medical Centre. It’s amazing to me that the numbers are so high, said Dr Jo...

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The East African (Nairobi), Kevin J. Kelley, Special Correspondent (link opens in a new window)

China Announces Major Plan to Combat Pollution, Revive Battered Environment

China announced a plan Wednesday to combat widespread pollution and leave a better environment for future generations, citing the need to stave off possible social instability. The plan, approved by the State Council, or Cabinet, focuses on pollution controls and calls for the country to clean up heavily polluted regions and reverse degradation of water, air and land by 2010. The move is aimed at protecting the long-term interests of the Chinese nation and le...

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Associated Press Financial Wire

Shs 350 Million Up For Grabs in Business Plan Competition

Dorothy Nakaweesi, Kampala Companies have been invited to submit business plans in a competition to earn the winner euro 150,000 (Shs350 million). The competition is organised by Business in Development (BiD), an international agency attached to the Royal Dutch embassy. The competition targets Small and Medium Scale businesses, which have a bias in poverty reduction. A three-page business plan can be submitted through the www.bidchallenge.org website ...

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The Monitor (Kampala) (link opens in a new window)