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Guest Post: An Entrepreneur's Thoughts on Market Incentives & Foreign Aid

Mills Scofield

Thoughts on Charity, Foreign Aid and Market Incentives - Tanzania. It may seem obvious, but when I spend all day thinking what is most cost effective and what is the most efficient allocation of resources, it is easy to lose track of the human dimension of charitable giving. by Chia Han Sheng on Sunday, August 19, 2012.

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Innovating The Brick-and-Mortar Injustice Infrastructure

Mills Scofield

This week''s post is by Andy Posner , Co-Founder & Executive Director of Capital Good Fund ( CGF ), a non-profit microfinance organization targeting the root causes of poverty through innovative micro-loans and personal financial coaching. It’s time for us to finally put poverty out of business for good. [1]

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Learning from Microfinance's Woes

Harvard Business Review

A few weeks ago, I attended a lecture about microfinance, and got sucker-punched. Expecting to hear a litany of pros and cons about the business, and an exploration of good and bad models, I was instead greeted with a knockout punch: Microfinance doesn't work, at least not in the way we think it does. That's nice.

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Making Microfinance More Effective

Harvard Business Review

A major challenge for international development efforts is determining which financial tools provide durable buffers against such setbacks. While meeting this challenge is a clear priority for policy makers and donors, it is also a major profit opportunity for commercial players who can solve market failures and create real value.

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How One Startup Developed a Sales Model That Works in Emerging Markets

Harvard Business Review

We serve two markets that are very different but united by the common need for reliable, safe access to energy: outdoor recreationalists and low-income households in emerging markets. We found an ideal storefront near a busy market in central Bhubaneswar. Experiment #5: Microfinance Institutions.

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Businesses Serving the Poor Need to Get Over Their Unease About Profit

Harvard Business Review

cents for a sachet that could purify 10 liters, Pur achieved penetration rates of 5% to 10% in its test markets — strong by almost any yardstick — but in 2005 the company gave up on Pur as a business, because the numbers simply hadn't worked. The microfinance industry is a rare D and E success story.

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Funders Can Give More than Money

Harvard Business Review

Six years ago, David and Donna Allman approached Opportunity with an idea that fell outside our traditional microfinance model: to build a Community Economic Development (CED) program in Nicaragua. We know that microfinance alone will not break the poverty cycle. Today, Roger is president of the school, elected by his peers.