NextBillion - A WDI Publication

Phillips Develops Off-Grid Lighting for Africa

Phillips apparently sees a fruitful market among the nearly 2 billion people who lack access to electricity. The company is rolling out a small line of lighting products specifically designed for the needs of those at the bottom of the economic pyramid. We’ve seen Phillips’ interest in this area before with its smokeless cooking stove, and we’ve seen what a difference simple lighting technology can make for rural communities. An entrant into this year’s Index Award,...

Source

Treehugger (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Bottom of the Pyramid Plan Boosts Revenues

Family Bank has transformed itself from a building society formed in 1984 to a fully-fledged bank. The indigenous bank has since its conversion in May 2007 been on a growth path in terms of customer outreach and the bottom line. It boasts of 44 branches spread across the country. Within the last one year the bank has added 11 branches to its network ,indicating its growth momentum. Operating in an increasingly competitive market, the bank has managed to hold its head high among its...

Source

Business Daily Africa (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Healthcare focus tackles the heart of the matter

I have been in Nairobi for 10 weeks, but in terms of knowledge and experience accumulated it feels like aeons. I am working as an intern with Acumen Fund, a global social venture fund. It provides equity and debt financing to enterprises that use market-based approaches to supply goods and services to the base of the pyramid - people earning under $4 (€2.79, £2.42) a day. My focus is on healthcare systems in East Africa, in particular mapping out the ecosystem for health...

Source

Financial Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Grameen Foundation and Google create mobile apps for Africa

Posted by Kristi Heim Real time information about farming, health and trading will be available to mobile phone users in Uganda with new technology services developed by the Grameen Foundation, Google and telecom operator MTN Uganda. The Grameen Foundation saw the proliferation of mobile phones in Africa as a way to get ...

Source

The Seattle Times (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

The missing middle to drive sustainable growth

Just imagine how different the world would be if, back in Microsoft’s earliest days, Bill Gates had been unable to find anyone to invest in him or if a decade ago the same had happened to Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page as they tried to get the business going from the garage of a suburban home in California. Entrepreneurs the world over who try to start up and grow businesses face the problem of lack of access to finance. Often, they also experience an equ...

Source

This is Africa (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Coca-Cola Distribution Model Contributes to Entrepreneurship

Report finds that the company’s Manual Distribution Centers have led to the creation of 12,000 jobs while contributing to the Millennium Development Goals. SocialFunds.com -- As part of its commitment to the Business Call to Action, Coca-Cola has developed a Manual Distribution Center (MDC) model in Ethiopia and Tanzania that has the potential to contribute to some of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Coca-Cola’s efforts in Africa are described in a report entitled ...

Source

Social Funds (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Is Aid Working?

It is hard to argue with the lofty ambition to end once and for all the scourge that is global poverty. How the world should go about this, however, is much more vexed. If poor countries do not have sufficient capital, aid advocates argue that there is a moral imperative for rich ones to help. Since 1970 hundreds of billions of dollars in bilateral and multilateral aid has been sent to Africa from the developed world. G20 leaders agreed at last month’s summit London that an extra $50bn ...

Source

Financial Times (link opens in a new window)

Categories

Agriculture, Investing

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Africa?s No.1in No.2

Human excrement is serious business. Three African social entrepreneurs, David Kuria, Joseph Adelegan and Trevor Mulaudzi, spoke at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., in February to share this revolutionary approach to solving the global sanitation crisis. The entrepreneurs speak from experience; each has established lucrative and groundbreaking businesses related to people “doing their business” — and providing the proper sanitation facilities for it often in crow...

Source

Water & Wastewater International (link opens in a new window)

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa