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Wall Street Journal: Look Beyond India’s ‘Poor Man’s’ Market
PwC defines the “Next 4 Billion” as countries that have an average annual per capita income that ranges between $1,000 and $4,000, and that, together, are home to four billion people – or more than half of the current global population of 7 billion. Apart from India and China, this group includes Indonesia and countries in Latin America and Africa.
- Region
- South Asia
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Best Ideas of 2011: 2012, the Year of Archimedean Entrepreneurs
Around 200 BC, Archimedes made a formidable dare: "Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it and I shall move the world". Two thousand years later, ‘Archimedean entrepreneurs’ are responding to this mythical challenge, moving Africa beyond the "starving-growth" paradox to address the greatest challenge facing us.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
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Best Ideas of 2011: Understanding Three Affordable Housing X-Factors
I spent most of 2011 in Pakistan working at Ansaar Management Company on affordable housing projects in the flood-affected areas. Reflecting on the year, there are three distinct lessons that stand out. I call them X-Factors; lessons that, if understood broadly, could make a significant difference in the way in which housing is provided for all.
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- Uncategorized
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Weekly Roundup – 1/8/12: Best Ideas of 2011 Making it Hip to Help the BoP
Warby Parker sells inexpensive, highly fashionable eyewear with the promise to give a pair to a child in need for every pair sold. The company bypasses the criticism that one-for-one models can be more disruptive than helpful. In partnership with VisionSpring, it doesn’t just drop eyeglasses in the developing world, but empowers local communities.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
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Best Ideas of 2011: Improvising at the BoP
Planning works (reasonably) well in established, stable markets. But classical "planning" is unlikely to help when innovating in the surprising complexity of BoP markets as mapped in ’Poor Economics.’ Certainly, "chaos" and "anarchy" are not the answers either. Improvisation could provide a metaphor allowing us to understand this fragile balance.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
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Best Ideas of 2011: All Signs Point to the Vitality of Sharing
Last year I reported on www.admittingfailure.com, a platform created by Engineers Without Borders Canada and Peace Dividend Trust for individuals to share mistakes or failures encountered in their work with the development community. Although the site hasn’t recorded a large number of failures since it went live, we need more initiatives like it.
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- Uncategorized
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Does ’the Cloud’ Have a Silver Lining for the Poor? New Sources of E-Transaction Data Hold Promise
Financial services firms in wealthy nations depend heavily on data to design their products and tailor products to consumers. A very basic example is using credit scores. This data-driven approach has been largely impossible for banks that would pursuing BoP customers. But that may be changing as several startup firms are gearing for launch.
- Categories
- Technology
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Why the Failure of the Nano Has Been a Success
The Tata Nano’s launch failed by nearly every measure, including highly publicized flame outs of just purchased cars. Yet the $2,000 Nano gave companies thinking about emerging segments in emerging markets something to talk about. The hype caused firms of many sizes and industries to plan or imagine how their products might someday reach the poor.
- Categories
- Finance