NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Reliance, Bharti may storm microfinance

Reliance Retail and Bharti, which has joined hands with Wal-Mart, could storm the micro-credit space as they look to establish rural supply chain linkages to service their mega retail forays. According to sources, Reliance Retail is likely to move the RBI seeking permission to set up an NBFC arm that will operate as a microfinance institution (MFI). It may also look at partnering existing MFIs as part of its ambitious supply chain with rural and semi-urban markets for which the co...

Source

The Economic Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Now that China eased market entry policies for banking institutions in rural China last month, seven commercial banks have applied to set up a subsidiary in rural areas. On Dec. 22, 2006, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) published proposals to give financial institutions more market access in rural areas. The move was aimed to promote rural development. The CBRC has received applications from Minsheng Bank, Beijing Rural Commercial Bank, Tianjin Rural Cooperat...

Source

Xinhua (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

China’s development ’experiment’ key to future growth

Maintaining a balance between environmental sustainability and the continuing process of urbanisation is a major issue facing the Chinese, write the researchers. Although much of China’s biodiversity is being threatened by rapid economic development and human activities, Tang Zhiyao and colleagues report the existence of ten biodiversity ’hotspots’ in mountain ranges that remain largely unaffected. Protecting these mountainous areas is critical for cons...

Source

World Business Council for Sustainable Development (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Chinese Take a Turn at Turning a Sub-Saharan Profi

Through all the iterations of the world?s engagement with Africa, most of its nations have remained stuck in an economic trap in which they primarily supply valuable raw materials to the developed world while serving as a marketplace for cheap manufactured goods.? But China seems to be offering Africa something new, a straightforward business relationship between equals based on mutual interest and noninterference in the internal affairs of its allies. Excerpts: China, it seems, is sudden...

Source

New York Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Small business growth could reduce poverty in Indonesia: World Bank

Excerpt: Small businesses, which employ millions of Indonesians, could become major engines of economic growth in this cash-strapped country and help reduce poverty, the World Bank has said. Indonesia’s 15.7 million small enterprises make up more than 90 percent of all businesses and employ up to 60 percent of the workforce, outside agriculture, but their growth is hindered by access to credit and poor infrastructure, the World Bank’s Indonesia director said in a report rel...

Source

TodayOnline.com (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Workshop aims to help Vietnam’s poor take advantage of markets

An organization called M4P is exploring how poor Vietnamese can escape poverty by taking advantage of the free market. At a recent workshop in Hanoi, experts said that using market forc es to fight poverty is promising, but far from easy.

Source

Voice of America (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Enterprise holds key to booming start-ups

When Wu Shengying’s wine-selling business failed in 2003, he abandoned farming in his hilly village in Shandong Province and turned to an idea that he hoped would please Chinese palates as much as KFC chicken wings [...] and after breaking several thousand eggs in experiments, he finally worked out a formula that he believes strikes a perfect balance between temperature and timing to make good roasted eggs. Wu’s roasted eggs, with ...

Source

chinagate.cn (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific

Hong Kong’s initial foray into BOP enterprise development

More than 300 participants from various sectors on Thursday attended the Conference on Social Enterprise to discuss new approach to helping the poor. The conference, jointly organized by the Commission on Poverty and the Central Policy Unit of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, aims to enhance community understanding of social enterprise and explain its relevance to poverty alleviation. The one-day conference was the first of its kind and scale in Hong ...

Source

Xinhua Online (link opens in a new window)

Region

Asia Pacific