Daring to Dream? The Realities and Risks for Adolescent Girls Living in Fragile and Conflict Affected Areas
The toxic mix of conflict and violence, poverty, limited access to education and gender inequality leaves girls and young women at high risk of exploitation. Traffickers cash-in on girls’ dreams by promising well-paid jobs and an escape from poverty and crisis, but in reality it’s a path to exploitation. As Plan International UK we have […]
C’est La CIV!
Corporate Impact Venturing (CIV) is a relatively new approach, marrying classic Corporate Venturing with social entrepreneurship. It is particularly apt for venturing into low-income markets, as our recent report shows. Oh la la! Many of the pioneers in CIV are French multinationals: The French utility Engie started “Rassembleurs d’Energie” in 2011 with a total investment capacity of […]
A New Twist on an Old Story: Renewed Hope For Impact From Large Companies
I have been lucky enough to meet the women entrepreneurs of 2 Chak Village, Sargodha district in Pakistan three times over the last two years. They tell inspiring stories of how selling high-quality hygiene products to their fellow women has brought them valuable income, but also respect and empowerment. Many of them have had extremely […]
It’s Time for Business Leaders to Raise their Voices for Human Rights
Something strange has been happening in the world of business and human rights. Leaders of multinational corporations around the globe are speaking out about the negative human rights challenges faced in their operations and supply chains. Where most companies seek to avoid any public association with human rights issues, these business leaders are breaking the […]
Self Devouring Growth
We all know that the dividends of growth and progress have not been adequately shared with people living at the bottom of the pyramid. Growth has disproportionately and negatively affected people in poor locales, or it will do so in the decades to come. Lower income communities and the Global South will be least resilient […]
What Does it Take To Go Big? Management Practices to Bring Inclusive Business to Scale
The Inclusive Business Management Practices Tool, supported by DfID and developed as part of the Inclusive Business Boost, marks a new stage in the development of Business Call to Action. The Tool provides inclusive business (IB), particularly within multinational corporations (MNCs), with an assessment tool that sets a new bar, with aspirations to motivate and […]
Might Slowing Down Be the Best Way to Accelerate Change in Business?
This was the underlying theme of the book I wrote last year, The Intrapreneur: Confessions of a corporate insurgent, (which Business Fights Poverty were kindly the main sponsor of): “did I go nuts or is it the system I was trying to change that’s crazy?” Having said all of that, purchasing the remains of a […]
Buy Leadership, Sell Poverty – How Finance Can Boost Value in Agricultural Supply Chains
Financial access and inclusion continue to be sold to farming communities in the world’s leading supply chains at the very price of poverty. How do we reduce this toxic trade-off, why is it taking so long and how does it impact the planet’s future? Tasneem Mayet, Business Fights Poverty Ambassador, shares insights from conversations had […]
The Coffee Price Crisis: How to Support More Sustainable Livelihoods for Farmers
The world is starting to wake up to the difficulties facing coffee farmers. As global prices hover near historic lows, the media has shared stories of coffee growers struggling to keep their farms afloat or abandoning their crops to seek other sources of income. Governments, international organizations, private companies, and nonprofits have made public calls […]
Businesses Share Employment Practices to Eradicate Poverty
Last Thursday was International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. Whilst ending poverty is a motivating goal, it is not always clear how to work towards this lofty ambition through day-to-day business operations. In a new toolkit, Reducing Poverty through Employment, members of the Global Impact Sourcing Coalition (GISC) have collaborated to share their experience […]
5 Reflections on How International Donors Help Businesses Scale their Contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals
The session was part of a wider Challenge supported by the UK’s Department for International Development. In this article, I summarise some of the key themes that came out during the conversation in New York. 1. The Urgent Need All participants recognized the significance of this moment – in which no country is currently on […]
How Can Business Accelerate Career Opportunity for Entry-Level Workers to Ensure the Future of Work is Strong and Inclusive?
During Business Fights Poverty New York, a select group of professionals from the business, academia and the international development community explored how companies are responding to disruptive trends affecting the Future of Work, such as automation, the rise of artificial intelligence, and new forms of independent employment and how companies are preparing their workforce for […]
How to Take Donor Partnerships with Business to the Next Level of Scale and Impact?
It is now generally acknowledged that the additional $2.5 trillion annual investment in developing countries needed to achieve the Global Goals cannot be delivered without the active engagement of the private sector. All sectors with a stake in the Global Goals, including governments, development organisations, business and civil society are therefore increasingly focused on unlocking […]
In Memoriam: Tribute to Paul Polak – Market-Based Development Pioneer 1933 – 2019
We were greatly saddened to hear the news of the death of Paul Polak, a pioneer of market-based development, on 10 October 2019. Paul’s mission was to inspire a revolution in how we tackle poverty – showing how market-based approaches to development can benefit the 2.7 billion customers who live on less than $2 a […]
How Can Companies and Investors Collaborate to Embed Purpose Authentically into Business?
“How can companies and investors collaborate to embed purpose authentically into business?” As part of our Challenge on Purpose supported by GSK, VISA and Unilever, Business Fights Poverty convened a meeting of around 30 representatives from companies, financial institutions, NGOs and development institutions to discuss this pertinent topic. The benefits of business purpose – for […]
How Can We Better Support Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Large Company Value Chains Through an Ecosystems Approach?
Business Fights Poverty has been running a Challenge to find out how business can take an ecosystems approach to support Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in their extended value chains. To ensure MSMEs thrive, large companies, governments, donors and funders and NGOs need to move towards a holistic and joined-up approach to enterprise support. […]
How Can Technology be Utilised by Businesses to Tackle Modern Slavery in their Global Supply Chains?
Our New York Conference provided an opportunity to explore how strengthening companies’ two-way, real-time engagement with workers in their supply chains is improving worker well-being, and helping to address modern slavery. During the discussion, we uncovered emerging examples of technology assisting in this process, and asked what lessons we can learn from companies’ experiences to […]
A Conversation on The Future of Work at the 2019 Concordia Annual Summit
To mark the launch of a new Challenge supported by Walmart on the Future of Work, Enrique Ostalé, Regional CEO of UK, Latin America and Africa at Walmart International, and Zahid Torres-Rahman, Founder and CEO of Business Fights Poverty joined Brad Staples, CEO of APCO at Concordia’s 2019 Annual Summit, to speak about International Future […]
How Can Business Address Gender Equality Challenges Through Business Aware Practices?
This year, the first SDG Gender Index, produced by Equal Measures 2030, found that 2.8bn women and girls are living in countries that are ‘failing’ or ‘barely passing’ on gender equality, and no country is on track to achieve full gender equality by 2030. Even the higher-scoring countries were unable to make significant progress on […]
Advancing Gender Equality Across the Value Chain: Engaging Men as Allies
Following international movements such as UN Women’s #HeforShe campaign, there is growing awareness of the need to engage men as allies for gender equality. What is less clear is what this might mean in practice for businesses in their efforts to advance gender equality. Business Fights Poverty has launched a Challenge, supported by AB InBev […]