NextBillion - A WDI Publication

Grading scheme for microfinance institutions

Rating agency Crisil and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) today announced launch of a grading scheme for micro-finance institutions (MFIs). As part of the MFI grading scheme, Nabard will reimburse banks the grading fees paid to Crisil. The scheme will be operational initially for a year. The scheme will support the grading of those MFIs having a loan outstanding between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 5 crore. ?Barring a few, most MFIs are u...

Source

Business Standard

Glaxo and IAVI partner to develop AIDS vaccine

GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK Biologicals) and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) today announced a public-private partnership to develop an AIDS vaccine using a promising new technology. The collaboration - the first-ever in AIDS vaccine research between IAVI and a major vaccine company - will facilitate early research and development of GSK’s non-human primate adenovirus vaccine vector as an enabling component of an effective AIDS vaccine. Under the agreement, ...

Source

Medical News Today

The lives of about 50,000 human beings, mostly children, are cut short every day by avoidable poverty-related causes. These account for one third of all human deaths - 18 million every year. Hundreds of millions more suffer grievously from such avoidable medical conditions. The lives of even more are shattered by severe illnesses or premature deaths in their families. These medical problems strain the economies of many poor countries, thereby perpetuating their poverty which in turn contributes...

Keke Has Given Hope To Many, by Nsikan Essien

Alban Ofili-Okonkwo, Executive chairman of Autobahn Techniques Limited, is an ardent proponent of mass empowerment as a tool for wealth creation. This belief he has given practical expression through his Keke Nigeria Project, the first phase which has brought to fruition the Keke NAPEP initiative. At the last count, the Keke NAPEP initiative has seen the Obasanjo administration purchasing about four thousand ...

Source

Newswatch

Uganda Telecom targets rural areas for growth

The heat in the telecommunication sector is high with players targeting virgin areas with new products. Bamuturaki Musinguzi asked Uganda Telecom Marketing Manager, Mr Hans M.F. Paulsen on the latest developments in the industry. How much have you invested since privatisation in 2000? Upon privatisation of Uganda telecom, we had to transform the company from a single provider into a competitive telecommunications provider with a wide range of services. To achie...

Source

The Monitor

GTZ And Chiquita Form New Public-Private Partnership In Costa Rica

The German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) and Chiquita Brands International are launching a new public-private partnership (PPP) initiative ? the Nogal Nature and Community Project ? in Costa Rica. The aim of this initiative is to preserve biodiversity, promote nature conservation awareness among the local population and create new sources of income for the people. On a Chiquita farm on the banks of the R?o Sucio in nort...

Source

CSRwire

ITC plans 30 rural malls; 2nd phase of e-choupal in 2006, by Mohan Padmanabhan

Having successfully established the country’s first private sector rural mall, ITC Ltd plans to open 30 more such malls in 2005-06, in synergy with its fast growing e-choupal network. ITC’s rural mall - Choupal Sagar - is at Sehore in Madhya Pradesh. The construction of nine malls is nearing completion (three each in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh). They may be opened within the next few months. The Sehore mall, housed in 5 acres of land,...

Source

The Hindu Business Line

IFC Lends Support to Microloans in Russia, by Anna Smolchenko

The International Finance Corporation, the World Bank’s private lending unit, signed its first deal to support microloans in Russia on Friday. The $1 million loan to the Russian Women’s Microfinance Network is intended to support hundreds of microloans -- on average $1,500 each -- to entrepreneurs without the collateral to qualify for traditional bank loans. For us this is a very interesting project targeting segments of the population that are not being ser...

Source

The Moscow Times