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Shifting from Aid to Entrepreneurship: A Better Response to Forced Displacement
In 2024, the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide reached nearly 123 million. According to Mary Mwangi at Inkomoko, this growing reality, coupled with shrinking humanitarian aid, demands a new response. Instead of seeing forcibly displaced people as passive recipients of aid living in costly refugee camps, she urges the global development sector to view them as individuals with entrepreneurial drive and economic potential. She explores how Inkomoko is working to empower displaced entrepreneurs in Africa through financing, skill development and access to markets.
- Categories
- Investing
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EU Flags Stronger Partnership With South Africa With €4.7 Billion Investment
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced a €4.7 billion investment package for South Africa.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Gender Incentives in Climate Finance: Doubling Down on Proven Approaches During Uncertain Times
With the endpoint of the SDGs just five years away, multiple factors have combined to undercut gender and climate-focused funding in several key global economies. Edward T. Jackson, Yiagadeesen Samy and Katie Turner argue that gender incentives in climate finance offer an effective solution to this dual challenge. They explore how these incentives can boost the supply of affordable, renewable energy, while improving wages and economic autonomy for women workers — and they argue that if there were ever a time to double down on this approach, it is now.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Investing
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Disrupting Waste Management in Emerging Markets: Four Lessons for Strengthening Businesses While Empowering Women and Communities
Early-stage companies in emerging markets whose workforces and value chains are dependent on women face several common challenges. According to Yaquta Fatehi at the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan and John F. Akwetey, these issues are especially relevant in the waste management sector. They share insights from a study of waste management businesses and practices in Kenya, which show the impacts of treating women’s empowerment and community engagement as integral elements of business strategies rather than peripheral concerns.
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Egyptian Ed-Tech Startup Eyouth in $6 Million Digital Skill Development Partnership
Founded in 2016 and taken online in 2018, EYouth designs and builds its own online training courses aimed at helping young people develop their careers and ensure they have the required skills for the labour market.
- Categories
- Education, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship Awards Fundación Paraguaya with 2024 Social Impact Excellence Award
Fundación Paraguaya has been a part of the Miller Center social impact community for almost 20 years, participating in 5 programs since 2005.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise
- Region
- Global
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Africa’s Startups Need Patient Capital: Could the African Diaspora Help Provide it?
African startup funding amounts to a tiny fraction of global venture capital (VC), and these investments are often concentrated on sectors like fintech and e-commerce. As a result, as Kristin H. Wilson at Innovate Africa Fund argues, African founders often lack the capital and incentive to tackle the continent’s biggest development challenges. She proposes a new approach to funding innovative African-made solutions to these issues — one that leverages the capital and entrepreneurial expertise of the African diaspora.
- Categories
- Health Care, Investing
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Microsoft Announces US $3 Billion Investment Over Two Years in India Cloud and AI Infrastructure to Accelerate Adoption of AI, Skilling and Innovation
Microsoft shared a comprehensive plan to train and skill 10 million people by 2030, reinforcing its commitment to partnering with India on its journey to become an AI-first nation.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific