A Networked Approach to International Development
The ever increasing – and much delayed – focus on impact measurement in international development is leading to some hard questions about how best the industry needs to be shaped. We all know that international development needs to become more responsive to local needs, less dependent on large head offices and in short, more effective. […]
Want to campaign for change with the private sector
Want to campaign for change with the private sector…read on Increasingly, NGOs are moving towards an approach to campaigning for social change that works with business. CARE, Barclays and Plan are recruiting for a strategic campaigner to help develop an alliance built around new international principles to responsibly link informal savings groups to financial institutions […]
The Challenge of Scale – It’s about Markets
The SEEP Network is a global network of practitioner organizations dedicated to combating poverty through promoting inclusive markets and financial systems. Members are active in 170 countries and engage with nearly 100 million households worldwide. From September 22-25, practitioners and thought-leaders from around the world will gather outside Washington, DC to discuss the challenges and […]
Want to Campaign for Change with the Private Sector?
Want to campaign for change with the private sector…read on Increasingly, NGOs are moving towards an approach to campaigning for social change that works with business. CARE, Barclays and Plan are recruiting for a strategic campaigner to help develop an alliance built around new international principles to responsibly link informal savings groups to financial institutions […]
1 Billion + 3 Reasons to Think about 2030
There is a lot to think about when you are in a room filled with social media pioneers, global thinkers, and experts from one of the world’s most populous countries: India. Everything you think about, in fact, starts with the reminder that 1 billion people are counting on the answers to how we tackle the […]
Innovation: Africa’s Great Leap Forward
In terms of innovation, Africa’s outlook is more positive than ever and the continent is leapfrogging its global counterparts in various sectors. The amplification of GDP growth in some parts of the continent (such as Nigeria) and the overall stability of African economies during the worrying economic downturn of recent years speak volumes for Africans’ […]
Voices from the South and the Post-2015 Agenda
The second Bridging the Gap for African Women in business conference was held in Kampala Uganda on 6 March 2014. The conference was part of this year’s International Women’s Day celebrations organized by the charity Let Them Help Themselves Out of Poverty and aimed to engage African Women in Business in a conversation on the […]
Mobile as a Catalyst for Learning & Skills Development
In the first of our blog series, we spoke about the fundamental benefits and impact of mobile in development. Mobile – in terms of social impact – is key to facilitating 3 essential elements: communication, action and measurement. In this article, we go more in-depth; focusing on how mobile is a catalyst for learning and […]
Mobile as a Catalyst for Learning & Skills Development
In the first of our blog series, we spoke about the fundamental benefits and impact of mobile in development. Mobile – in terms of social impact – is key to facilitating 3 essential elements: communication, action and measurement. In this article, we go more in-depth; focusing on how mobile is a catalyst for learning and […]
Moving Beyond Corporate Social Responsibility
In 2009, in the middle of the economic crisis, Danone CEO Franck Riboud made the following statement: “It is a common sense observation that no living organism can grow and develop in a deprived environment or a desert. It is in a company’s best interests to take good care of its economic and social environment, […]
The Secret Weapon of Intrapreneurial Innovators
peshkova / 123RF Stock Photo Last summer, Jennifer Sigler, the Chief Operating Officer at Global Giving, shared with me that her entire staff was reading the Lean Startup by Eric Ries. The idea that a senior manager of a non-profit would have all of her employees read a book about start-up strategy sounded unconventional and […]
Creating What’s Next for ICTs and Development
In less than a decade’s time, the majority of the world’s poor now own or regularly have access to a mobile phone. As a result, the internet and communications technology (ICTs) industry offers the newest and most relevant platform to reach the poor with essential services such as information, social networking, education, healthcare, employment opportunities, […]
The Ripple Effects of Investing in Women
On International Women’s Day, people around the world celebrate women’s achievements. In my home country of Papua New Guinea (PNG), there has never been a more important time to highlight the progress that is being made and the important link between investing in women and strengthening community and economic development. In 2012, I participated in […]
The Difference a Day in a Year Makes
We all know time is our most precious commodity. We all struggle to find enough time to dedicate to our families, hobbies, interest, work and friends. So when it comes time to embark on something new, we often get scared by the time commitment involved. “Will I have enough time for it? What is the […]
The Impact of Mobile on the Development Sector
‘Africa is not just a mobile-first continent, it is mobile only’ – CNN[1] While commercial business has taken the lead in optimising the opportunity mobile presents in Africa, the development sector is catching up. Now, every aid and development organisation is being forced to think actively about how mobile relates to its core business. Africans […]
Bridging the Gap for African Women in Business
As we get closer to the 2015 deadline, the debate about the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is no longer about whether the goals will be met but instead what will replace them. The debates about what the new development agenda should look like have generated wide-ranging opinions and a corpus of literature has been produced […]
Collaboration to Maximise Impact on Poverty Reduction
At a recent meeting in Paris, a German government representative took us through their approach to blending public money with private investment and development finance institutions (DFIs). Germany recently spent €40,000 of official development assistance (ODA) to leverage €300,000 of private sector funding to scale-up water and sanitation programmes. The investment reached 9.5 million people, […]
DFID’s Increased Focus on Economic Development
DFID’s shift towards a stronger focus on economic development is a top priority for the UK Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening. Last month, she delivered a speech at the London Stock Exchange where she gives the rationale for ramping up our work in this area. A new strategic framework – “Economic development […]
International Investments in Emerging Economies
Yesterday we saw that private investment is becoming increasingly important for many developing countries. Today we focus on two questions: What role do foreign investors play in different developing countries? And how can we maximise their contributions towards getting poverty to zero? Most foreign investment in developing countries is either in the largest and most […]
Uniting David & Goliath to Accelerate Agri-Development
Having worked across public, private and non-profit sectors in agricultural development for over 25 years, I have seen first-hand the benefits of successfully engaging with small-scale farmers in emerging economies. There is a clear link between the development of a viable agricultural sector, inclusive economic growth and food security in emerging markets. Research by Imperial […]