South Asia.

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  • Sankalp & SOCAP enter global alliance to further Impact Investing market

    Intellecap initiative Sankalp Forum announced a strategic partnership with Social Capital Markets, convener of the international SOCAP conference series, in San Francisco during SOCAP ‘13. Sankalp Forum is an enabling platform that helps social enterprises find investors, mentors and scale. And SOCAP works towards increasing the flow of capital towards social good.

    Source
    Press Release (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Uncategorized
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    impact investing
  • Apollo pins hopes on affordable healthcare

    Apollo Hospitals will bank on its own revenues for its rural healthcare drive under the brand Apollo Reach, with an aim at faster return on capital expenditure. “We have 10 Reach hospitals in operation. In the next three years, we’ll have 1,300 beds set up in Tier I cities, and another 1,100 in Tier II cities,” said Joint Managing Director Suneeta Reddy. Setting up a Reach hospital in a Tier II city will cost about Rs 50 lakh, which is less than half of what it takes for a healthcare centre in a city, she said. Each Reach hospital has about 120 beds.

    Source
    The Hindu Business Line (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Health Care
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    public health
  • Editorial: E-banking requires better technology support for operation

    Mobile banking is gaining ground among the people of the country since the Bangladesh Bank (BB) formulated a guideline nearly two years ago. Mobile banking grew at a faster pace, proving that it is more useful than the formal banking. Transaction through mobile banking service has been increasing at a rate of 20 per cent every month. Some 7.2 million people now make the use of different services under mobile banking services through more than one lakh outlets across the country.

    Source
    Financial Express (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Uncategorized
    Region
    South Asia
  • Vikram Akula tries a second coming at SKS Microfinance

    Vikram Akula, the poster boy of Indian microfinance who ran into trouble in the company he founded after it was listed, may be eyeing a return to its top post, with a key shareholder backing him.

    Source
    Hindustan Times (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Uncategorized
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    microfinance
  • Measles elimination by 2020: WHO

    The 11 member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Region are committed to eliminating measles and controlling rubella and congenital syndrome (CRS) by 2020, as stated at the 66thSession of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia, on Friday. The WHO estimates that US$800 million is needed to achieve this goal. WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia, Samlee Plianbangchang, said an estimated 8 million children in the region were not protected against measles.

    Source
    The Jakarta Post (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Health Care
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    public health
  • NextDrop Uses Big Data, Texting To Improve Water Distribution

    The proliferation of mobile-supported business models in India is substantial. Given its ubiquity amongst lower-income groups, mobile technology is recognized as a maximum impact tool, particularly for grassroots data collection. This “tech” model of social entrepreneurship has become the norm not only in India, but also in other emerging markets throughout Asia, Africa and South America.Case in point: NextDrop, a social enterprise launched in 2011, is simplifying urban water collection in India. With its “Smart Grid ‘Lite’” solution, the enterprise collects and shares water delivery information with city residents and water utilities. In this way, efficiency and transparency are improved upon.

    Source
    dowser.org (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Environment, Health Care, Technology
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    public health
  • The Best Of Both Worlds

    A frail looking Mini Shaji sits on a bed in the corner of the general ward of AyurVaid’s hospital in Bengaluru. Wearing a brick red nightgown, Shaji’s painfully thin frame looks devoid of all energy, but there is a glimmer of hope in her eyes. Six months back, the 36-year-old Shaji, who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, could not move without the help of a walking stick. A friend directed her to the AyurVaid centre at Ramamurthy Nagar. After 10 days of in-patient treatment, Shaji can now walk slowly without a stick. Though still weak, she’s now hopeful that the weight she lost because of her ailment will be regained too.

    Source
    Business Outlook India (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Health Care
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    public health
  • Vijayan launches Charioteer Fund-I impact investment fund

    Krishnamurthy Vijayan, the former executive chairman of JP Morgan Asset Management India, has launched an impact investment fund that will invest in India's livelihood and skills development space. The Rs 250-crore fund, Charioteer Fund-I, will be a five-year fund with an extension of a further five years, and will look to invest between Rs 1 crore and Rs 10 crore in micro-enterprise clusters.

    Source
    The Times of India (link opens in a new window)
    Categories
    Health Care
    Region
    South Asia
    Tags
    public health
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