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Weekly Roundup 2/1/14: Us and Them: Poverty goes mainstream in the U.S. – can financial innovation help?
The majority of Americans will spend at least a year in or near poverty between the ages of 25 and 60. And four out of five will encounter one or more poverty-related conditions in their lifetime. It’s clear that poverty isn’t just a major problem in the developing world. That’s why NextBillion is expanding our coverage to forward-thinking business solutions to domestic poverty.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment
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Poor service: Tiny loans are getting more expensive
INTEREST on the minuscule loans made by microfinance outfits has always been high, but over the past few years it has become even higher. A recent paper, using data on over 1,500 microfinance institutions (MFIs) from around the world, shows that for the smallest loans, typically less than $150, the average rate climbed steadily from 30% in 2004 to 35% in 2011.*
- Categories
- Uncategorized
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More than a Buzzword: How crowdfunding can expand opportunities for low-income entrepreneurs
Long seen as a vehicle for funding artistic ventures, crowdfunding is evolving into a potentially powerful resource for low-income people and the organizations that serve them. With loosening regulations in the U.S., startups may soon be able to fund their businesses through large pools of small investors, which could be a boon for low-income individuals striving to achieve financial stability through entrepreneurship.
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- Impact Assessment
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‘Micro-insurance Impacts Significantly on Social Indices’
The Micro-insurance Network, the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO’s) micro-insurance innovation facility, has said that micro-insurance has impacted positively on the standard of living of low income earners across the world.
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- Education, Impact Assessment
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Financial Sector Can Help Bolster Africa’s Economy, Panelists Say
One of the stated aims of this year’s World Economic Forum is inclusion. A panel discussion on Africa’s future, one that included two sitting presidents from that continent, did its best to emphasize that theme.
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- Impact Assessment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Microfinance as a tool for empowering conflict-affected communities
At a recently-held seminar organised by the Pathfinder Foundation in Colombo, a paper and three presentations were publicised under the theme ‘microfinance as a tool for empowering conflict-affected communities’.
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- Education
- Region
- South Asia
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How to Build a Market for Eyeglasses: More than 600 million people have serious vision problems and they — and society — pay a steep price
It would take $5 million to $10 million in venture capital to start an international company that would buy a million eyeglasses in mainland China at around 50 cents apiece, design robust, visually appealing mobile display stands ... (and develop) an effective global distribution and marketing strategy.
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- Health Care
- Tags
- poverty alleviation, scale
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Contemplating Scarcity: Grameen Foundation’s Alex Counts on how the phenomenon of scarcity impacts microfinance and poverty alleviation
Alex Counts, president and CEO of Grameen Foundation, discusses new research on the phenomenon of scarcity – how having too little of anything important to the human experience can impact policy and practice in microfinance and poverty alleviation.
- Categories
- Education
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