NextBillion - A WDI Publication

Results

• News
  UN says Asia’s social enterprises face $2.5T funding gap

  To address the $2.5 trillion funding gap in Asia, the United Nations is counting on the private sector to support social enterprises.

• Blog Post
  Making the Case for Early-Stage Impact Investing

  In many emerging markets, social entrepreneurs are financing their ventures with personal funds and high-interest loans - mainly because it's so tough to grow out of the startup phase without being able to show financial returns. The nonprofit Beyond Capital Fund provides pro bono advisory services to help investee enterprises establish and implement operating procedures and regular impact reporting systems, writes CEO Eva Yazhari. She explains how these formalized structures lend credibility and stability to sustain the businesses and attract potential investors - functions that are often lacking in the impact investing ecosystem.

• Eva Yazhari

• Blog Post
  Internalizing Innovation: It’s About Creating a Culture, Not a Product

  Innovation holds the key to expanding financial health for low- and moderate-income households—but how can organizations foster a culture of innovation, rather than treating it as a one-off event or a process fix? MetLife Foundation and UNCDF are launching two new innovation hubs in China and Malaysia that aim to promote this cultural shift. Krishna Thacker and Jaspreet Singh discuss the program's unique approach.

• Blog Post
  Nine Ways to Make Money in mHealth: The Top Value Propositions from a Study of 234 Projects in Emerging Markets

  Telemedicine and mHealth initiatives often struggle in emerging markets - yet researchers seldom focus on how these ventures can better develop sustainable business models. An ambitious study of 234 mHealth projects in developing countries attempts to rectify this problem. Khanjan Mehta at Lehigh University runs down the research, highlighting the nine most common value propositions it found.

• News
  Press release: GSMA and W20 Announce Call to Action to Close Digital Gender Gap Ahead of G20 Summit

  “The GSMA has been privileged to help shape the W20 recommendations, which will provide an actionable roadmap for the G20 nations to drive gender equality policies around the world,” said Mats Granryd, Director General of the GSMA. “These recommendations underline the importance of closing the digital gender gap by removing barriers to access and use, and promoting policies that encourage the digital inclusion of women. We believe this approach will ensure women and girls play a major role in shaping our future digital economies.”

• News
  World Environment Day: ‘Our world is swamped by plastic’

  Eight million tonnes of plastic dumped into oceans each year, killing marine life and entering the human food chain.

• Blog Post
  The Partnership Nightmare: What’s Wrong with the Social Sector’s Approach to Funding – And How to Fix It

  Whether it's due to misaligned expectations, mutual distrust or power imbalances, interactions between social impact organizations and their funders can be nightmarish – for both sides. Social sector advocates Jessamyn Shams-Lau, Jane Leu and Vu Le have written a new book about these challenges, called "Unicorns Unite." In this Q&A, they discuss what's gone wrong – and how to make it better. Subscribers to NextBillion’s weekly e-newsletter can read an excerpt of the book throughout June.