Joe Phelan and Olive Boles: 10 ways to engage the private sector in health
Investing in the health of women and children is not only the right thing to do, it also builds stable, peaceful and productive societies. It reduces poverty, stimulates economic growth, is cost-effective and crucially, helps women and children realise their fundamental human rights. In September last year, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon launched “Every Woman […]
Jessica Scholl: To Divest or Not to Divest? – Doing Business in High-Risk Zones
As events rapidly unfold in the Arab World, the plight of business has been woefully under-reported. Companies with operations or investments in the region are finding themselves embroiled in morally, and often times legally, ambiguous situations. Political uncertainty further complicates the scenario, often requiring different policies to address unique circumstances. From the relatively peaceful to […]
Brook Horowitz: Corporate Culture that Has Less Vertical Power
The simultaneous visit to Moscow last month of two of the world’s most senior anti-corruption regulators highlights the attention governments are devoting to fighting corruption and the challenges they face in some of the biggest emerging markets. Lanny Breuer, head of the U.S. Justice Department’s criminal division, which manages the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and […]
Thoughts about women and gender equality
Last month we marked 100 years of International women’s day and the question everyone wanted an answer to and still does I suppose is, “How have things changed for women in that time?” For my part I have written several blog posts on the issue of women and gender equality to celebrate that milestone. This […]
Peter Brew: Business Must Play its Role to Ensure Sustainable Growth in China
China, with the rest of Asia, has become the engine of growth that can fuel recovery in Europe and North America. It is imperative that a new mutually enhancing partnership is forged by governments and business based on sustainable economic, social, ethical and environmental practices. The role of business, however, in making this sustainable growth […]
Désirée Abrahams: Where is the Business and Human Rights Arena Headed?
In December last year, IBLF advertised for a Programme Coordinator to work on business and human rights. Needing to get someone in quickly, we set a one-week deadline and an essay of 250 words, themed ‘In your opinion, what does the future hold for business and human rights over the next five years?’ We were […]
Employee Giving & Volunteering – What Matters Most
Corporate Volunteering promises an array of benefits, but there is one single benefit that overshadows the rest – one single benefit that is the sole measurement of success for your program. Photo by David Reese For me, the question is never, “How much did you do?” The question is, “Why does what you do matter?” […]
Employee Giving & Volunteering – What Matters Most
Corporate Volunteering promises an array of benefits, but there is one single benefit that overshadows the rest – one single benefit that is the sole measurement of success for your program. Photo by David Reese For me, the question is never, “How much did you do?” The question is, “Why does what you do matter?” […]
IBLF – Expert Insight: Dr Mo Ibrahim
IBLF – Expert Insight: Dr Mo Ibrahim from Business Fights Poverty on Vimeo. IBLF’s latest Expert Insight webcast features one of Time magazine’s top 100 influential people in the world – Dr Mo Ibrahim. As the founder of CelTel, that spans over 15 African countries with more than $750 million in investments, and the head […]
Reflections on the journey of corporate responsibility
Besides the regular festivities, food and frolicking, December is a time for reflection. Commentators love to look back on The Year That Was – debating everything from the most gripping news stories to the highest grossing movies. But it’s not often that you get to hear someone like the head of the UN Global Compact, […]
VC4Africa launches first African Venture Capital platform – Crunch your business idea!
Today VC4Africa starts the first African online venture capital matchmaking platform. Many investors are looking for businesses to get involved with but have difficulties in finding promise. At the same time many businesses seek knowledge, capital and practical support. Without matchmaking their promise is never realized, hindering economic growth. The VC4Africa community currently consists of […]
MicroWHAT?? From Microfinance to Microinsurance.
As a social business dedicated to improving access to insurance among economically disadvantaged communities in the US and across the globe, Avana wants to raise awareness about the importance of microinsurance in development and poverty reduction. Our first several blog entries will be dedicated to answering some of your most commonly asked questions about the […]
Stakeholder Governance: An Analysis of BITC Corporate Responsibility Index Data on Stakeholder Engagement and Governance
Some critics of Corporate Responsibility falsely claim that it represents surrendering the running of business to Greenpeace and other NGOs. That is nonsense. Engaging stakeholders is not an abdication of management responsibility. It is how effective and successful modern management thrives. Good management involves reconciling customers, employees’, suppliers’, owners’ and society’s wants and needs with […]
Enough Responsibility To Go Around: Lessons in Corporate Responsibilities From Corporate Crises
Corporate crises are not new. What is relatively new is the increased public awareness and interest in such crises as a result of globalisation, the availability of 24-hour news and the use of the internet and social media to disseminate news. This means that reactions to and scrutiny of events, such as the 2010 global […]
The Role Of Innovation And Technological Diffusion In Increasing Economic Growth
The UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) is planning to undertake a research programme on the role of innovation and technological diffusion in increasing economic growth in low-income countries and how policy can be used to encourage it. DFID plans to commission a number of research projects as part of this programme, and a call […]
Business and Migration: From Risk to Opportunity
Mar 10 – IBLF’s latest research highlights the huge opportunities in managing the global migration of labour and the essential role that business can play in raising labours standards for migrant workers.
Harnessing Development 2.0: Creating opportunities with the poor
As new ways of bringing people together web and mobile technology, from SMS to social networking, continue to change development initiatives, this paper examines how technology is transforming access to new markets, money and skills, and how it offers the prospect of driving more inclusive business models.
The power of business advocacy and ICT reforms
Increasingly, business participation in shaping reforms in an open and transparent manner is impacting the development of emerging markets. The private sector can become a valuable partner for policy makers through a process of business advocacy that enables companies to come together, identify issues of common concern and propose joint solutions that will support industry […]
Business Innovation to Fight Climate Change and Poverty: Resource List
This resource list was prepared for the event “Business Innovation to Fight Climate Change and Poverty” by the Overseas Development Institute. Recent publications Briefing Paper on “Business Innovation to Fight Climate Change and Poverty”, produced by the Growing Inclusive Markets initiative of the UNDP. Climate Change and Global Poverty: A Billion Lives in the Balance?,the […]
Fighting climate change and poverty: business must be the driver of innovation
Today, Blog Action Day (www.blogactionday.org), is focused on the climate change crisis. This is a crisis that is integrally connected with the focus of this practitioner community – fighting poverty through business. As Nick Stern, who led the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, argued recently, “There are two big challenges for this […]