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Viewpoint: Why impact investing can help solve the world’s problems
A lack of funding is impeding progress on the sustainable development goals, but private banks plug the gap.
- Categories
- Investing
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‘Appeasement Reporting’ in Development Projects: Satisfying Donors at the Expense of Beneficiaries
“Appeasement reporting” is a common practice among development organizations, says Richard Tinsley. The term refers to their tendency to slant donor reporting, making all projects appear successful and concealing any failures or lack of beneficiary interest. This appeases donors hoping for impactful projects – but it has a detrimental effect on beneficiaries, future projects and the organizations involved. Tinsley explores the causes and consequences of this practice, using the example of farmer co-ops for smallholders.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Impact Assessment
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Press release: DFS Lab Announces Open Applications for Fintech Hackathon Focused on the Mojaloop Software
Mojaloop was created by the Gates Foundation's Level One Project, which is aimed at leveling the economic playing field by crowding in expertise and resources to build inclusive payment models to benefit the world's poor.
- Source
- Press release
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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After Rana Plaza – Do Consumers Care About Supply Chain Transparency? Our Research Shows They Do
The Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh killed over 1,100 people and revealed the horrific conditions that many garment workers endure. Yet it's difficult for apparel makers to create transparent supply chains, and the benefits to their bottom line are not always clear. Do customers really care – and are they willing to reward a company for socially responsible efforts? According to research from Tim Kraft and Yanchong Zheng at the Sloan School of Management, the answers are yes and yes.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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Can Mobile Money Boost Financial Inclusion in Southern Africa?
Mobile money offers opportunities for the unbanked to save, spend, and transfer money using just a cell phone. Linda Du ’19, an MBA student at Yale SOM, traveled to Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to talk with providers, customers, and others about the technology’s potential to give the poor access to the financial system.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Electricity is Just the Beginning: Why Off-Grid Solar Opens the Door to Value-Added Services
Lack of energy access is a much-discussed issue in rural households and businesses across the developing world. But according to Mansoor Hamayun, CEO of BBOXX, electricity is just the beginning: Solar home systems could lay the foundation for a host of related services that could transform the quality of life in off-grid communities. Hamayun discusses “Tomorrow’s Rural Home,” BBOXX’s vision for the off-grid home of the future, which shows how solar energy access could create new markets and power economic growth in Africa and beyond.
- Categories
- Energy, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Why the Social Impact Sector Needs a ‘Bizarro Davos’: A Modest Proposal That Nobody Will Like
It’s that time of year again: Time to talk about the true meaning of Davos. But among all the hot takes and well-earned snark at the expense of insufferable elites, it’s worth asking if the rest of us are so different. Even those of us who work in the social impact sector don’t seem to object to high-brow conferences, and few regular folks seem willing to make the kinds of sacrifices that may be necessary to tackle the generational challenges we face. NextBillion editor James Militzer discusses this dynamic, and makes a sure-to-be-unpopular proposal.
- Categories
- Environment, Social Enterprise
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Viewpoint: Why toilets should be on the agenda at Davos
As the world’s cities grow, and the extreme weather patterns that accompany climate change take greater hold, innovation in sanitation presents more than great opportunity and must not be relegated to the corporate social responsibility team.
- Categories
- WASH