NextBillion - A WDI Publication

World Leaders Commit to Eradicating African Poverty

Leading figures in the development debate, speaking at the meeting of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos, have pledged to build on the mountain of good will generated last year, and follow through towards the goal of eradicating poverty in Africa. According to a press release from the Forum, they agreed that top priorities for 2006 should include: getting global trade talks back on track, exposing corruption both by givers and recipients, and investing ...

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Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique (Maputo) (link opens in a new window)

Energy-Senegal:Theft Casts a Shadow Over Solar Programmes

At a time when concerns about global warming and the need for renewable energy sources are grabbing headlines the world over, it seems particularly regrettable that communities would be afflicted by the theft of solar panels. Yet, this is precisely what is happening in rural areas of Senegal, in West Africa. Just as we’re trying to improve life for rural populations in the interior of the country, evil-minded individuals are attempting to undermine the substanti...

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Inter Press Service (Johannesburg), Abdou Faye (link opens in a new window)

Mobiles Get Emerging Markets Lift

Global mobile phone shipments grew by 19% last year, helped by strong demand from emerging markets such as India and Africa, according to a study. A record 810 million units were shipped with emerging markets accounting for half of total global sales, research firm Strategy Analytics said. The firm predicted one billion units would be sold in 2007 if the rate of sales in emerging markets continued. 2005 was the year of the emerging market, the compa...

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BBC News World Edition (link opens in a new window)

Microsoft Would Put Poor Online By Cell Phone

It sounds like a project that just about any technology-minded executive could get behind: distributing durable, cheap laptop computers in the developing world to help education. But in the year since Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Laboratory, unveiled his prototype for a $100 laptop, he has found himself wrestling with Microsoft and the politics of software. Mr. Negroponte has made significant progress, but he has also catalyzed t...

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

To Anyone familiar with banking in the rich world, the world of microfinance can seem rather odd. The main providers have not been motivated by anything as straightforward as making money, at least until recently. The core of the industry today consists of some three dozen multinational networks of microfinance providers, which despite their superficial similarities and inspirational rhetoric compete fiercely and fight over everything. The main areas of strategic disagreement are whe...

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The New Nation (link opens in a new window)

Grameen Foundation USA (GFUSA) today announced the appointment of Deborah Burand as its new executive vice president for programs. Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) January 26, 2006 -- Grameen Foundation USA (GFUSA) today announced the appointment of Deborah Burand as its new executive vice president for programs. A widely-respected microfinance trailblazer and lawyer, Burand will oversee GFUSA?s Grameen Technology Center, Capital Markets Group and program operations. ?This is a t...

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eMediaWire (link opens in a new window)

City Poor Can’t Afford Electricity

A FEASIBILITY study has found that the majority of around 14 000 households in Windhoek’s informal settlements will not be able to pay for either electricity connections or consumption if this were to be provided to them. The study commissioned by the City in 46 informal settlements found that the residents wanted a high level of electrical infrastructure, which was beyond their means to pay for. The analysis of the households’ income revealed that most households...

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The Namibian (Windhoek), Lindsay Dentlinger (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

IFC to Help Kyrgyz Not-for-Profit Group Reach More Microentrepreneurs

The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, today signed an agreement to provide a $2.2 million financing package to Micro Credit Agency Bai Tushum Financial Foundation, one of Kyrgyzstan?s leading micro lending institutions. Through the package, IFC will support the transformation of Bai Tushum from its present not-for-profit status to a more sustainable, commercially-oriented, deposit-taking financial institution that can serve as a...

Source

ifc.org (link opens in a new window)

Region

Europe & Eurasia