News Archive 2009
December 2009
11.12.2009 - PhD students discuss latest developments in research on inclusive business at the oikos UNDP Young Scholars Development Academy 2009
To discuss their research projects that study inclusive businesses, fifteen PhD students gathered for the one-week oikos UNDP Young Scholars Development Academy 2009 in Kaubad, Switzerland from the 6th to the 11th of December, 2009. As they key part of the academy, participants presented study proposals and first research results focused on corporate strategies to reach the BoP, entrepreneurship, cross-sectoral partnerships or evaluation. The event was developed and co-organized by oikos PhD fellow and Emergia Associate Martin Herrndorf for the oikos Foundation and UNDP's Growing Inclusive Markets. The Mercator Foundation Switzerland also sponsored the event.
Please find more information on the event and its results on NextBillion.net
11.12.2009 - PlaNetFinance: increased investment accrues to only few micro-finance institutions
PlaNet Finance welcomed around 20 participants in their offices in Berlin Mitte for the second Inclusive Business Brown Bag Lunch titled "Micro-Finance as Social Investment". Delphine Bazalgette and her dynamic team offered in-depth knowledge on the financing side of the microfinance industry. In her presentation, Kathleen Welvers showed that while the volume of investment into the sector is steadily increasing and more and more private investors are pouring in funds, the number of institutions who benefit from these investments is fairly small. The largest part is absorbed by the 150 best performing MFIs globally, out of more than 10.000 such institutions. Participants dicussed the role of the public sector in creating this market and supporting newcomers. They were also interested in the potential to transfer micro-finance models to Germany.
4.12.2009 - UNDP brokers test tools for inclusive business model development
More than 40 UNDP experts for private sector engagement participated in a training on inclusive business model development in Mombasa, Kenya. Christina Gradl and Claudia Knobloch introduced them to communication strategies for engaging companies as well as practical tools to co-develop a business model with them. The participants then practiced the application of these tools with own business ideas. Using highly interactive meeting techniques, the training also generated a wealth of knowledge from existing experiences of the participants. Based on the training, a primer will be developed to support UNDP private sector focal points and brokers in their work with companies. The training was organized by the UNDP Growing Sustainable Business Initiative as part of a four day workshop.
November 2009
16.11.2009 – Impact of base of the pyramid ventures: The global BoP family meets in Delft
The international conference "Impact of base of the Pyramid Ventures" brought together over 200 experts on inclusive business in Delft, the Netherlands, from November 16 till 18. The event stood out due to the comparatively high participation of representatives from developing countries.
Emergia Institute co-hosted a workshop on Sustainable Consumption Production together with the CSCP. Martin Herrndorf and Christina Gradl presented tools for developing sustainable ventures. The workshop showed that such simple yet specialized tools were high in demand: a rapid assessment among the participants detected many demands on sustainable entrepreneurs, but hardly any standardized tools to support their endeavours.
Website of the conference: http://www.bopimpact.nl/Impact_of_BoP_Ventures/Home.html
03.11.09 - Emergia launches its primer "Entwicklungsgeschäfte" at the GTZ Haus in Berlin
Christina Gradl and Claudia Knobloch presented their publication "Entwicklungsgeschäfte" to the public at an evening event in the GTZ Haus in Berlin. This German primer shows companies why, how and where to develop inclusive business models. After opening speeches by representatives of BMZ and DIHK, both partners in this project, the co-authors briefly introduced the content of the report. After that, three rounds of discussions with practitioners provided an insight into the real-world challenges of actually developing inclusive business models. The conversations during the evening reconfirmed the key message of the publication: we have learnt quite a lot about doing business against poverty already, but there is still a long way to go to achieve scale!
Oktober 2009
15.10.09 - Genia Kostka talks about the future of sugar cane at the International Workshop on Sustainable Energy Crops and Biofuels Development in China and Asia
Genia Kostka participated in the “International Workshop on Sustainable Energy Crops and Biofuels Development in China and Asia” organized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China (PRC). She presented the paper “The future of sugar cane in China and India – Supply constraints and expansion potential“ which was co-authored by her together with Christine Polzin and Jenny Scharrer. The main objective of this workshop is to initiate discussions and stimulate new ideas on biofules and bioenergy crops development, with special focus on Asia including the PRC. In this light, scholars, decision makers, and project developers were invited to discuss and maximize information exchange on the sustainable development of biofuels in Asia.
08.10.2009 - Shuan SadreGhazi talks about “Taking Innovations to the Poor” at GLOBELICS in Dakar, Senegal.
Shuan talks about “Taking Innovations to the Poor“ at the international conference GLOBELICS in Dakar, Senegal. GLOBELICS (Global Network for Economics of Learning, Innovation, and Competence Building Systems) is an international network of scholars who apply the concept of "learning, innovation, and competence building system" (LICS) as their framework and are dedicated to the strengthening of LICS in developing countries, emerging economies and societies in transition. The paper, which was co-authored together with Dr. Shyama Ramani and Prof. Geert Duysters, was based on a study on the practices of Sanitation activists in India.
Event link: http://globelics2009dakar.merit.unu.edu/
06.10.2009 - Shuan SadreGhazi talked about promoting pro-poor innovations at the international seminar on "Inclusive Business and Job Creation" at ICEI
Shuan SadreGhazi was invited to hold a presentation on promoting pro-poor innovations at the international seminar on "Inclusive Business and Job Creation", that took place in Madrid on October 6-7. The seminar was hosted by the Complutense Institute of Foreign Studies (ICEI) and supported by the Spanish Ministry of Labour and Immigration, who also organized the International Seminar.
The aim of the event was to reflect on the problems of poverty and access to employment. Participants were invited to share experiences regarding business at the bottom of pyramid as an opportunity for social change and integration of disadvantaged people in the economy.
Event link: www.ucm.es/info/icei/pdf/negocios.inclusivos.pdf
September 2009
17.9.2009 - Excerpts from publication "Entwicklungsgeschäfte" published on csr-weltweit.de
A dossier on inclusive business is now available on www.csr-weltweit.de. It introduces the concept of aligning business development and poverty alleviation, highlights challenges and describes innovative business models and organizational success factors. The website now also informs about inclusive business in Brazil, India, China, South Africa, Mexico and the Russian Federation.
The dossier is an excerpt from the publication "Entwicklungsgeschäfte", which will be lauched in Berlin on November 3.
17.9.2009 - Bertelsmann Stiftung publishes a white paper on tools for strategic CSR
The paper identifies four mega trends that will directly or indiractly influence the future activities of German companies. Starting from the opportunities and risks these trends create, the paper introduces tools and approaches companies can use to deal with these changes and enable long-term sustainability and growth.
Claudia Knowbloch and Christina Gradl supported the development of the paper. It can be downloaded here.
16.9.2009 - CSR Experts discuss approaches to aligning CSR and issue management
"An issue ignored is a crisis invited“, as Henry Kissinger once said. 16 experts from large German companies and intermediaries discussed what an effective issue management as part of a strategic CSR management could look like.
Recognizing and managing critical developments and trends earlyon can help a company to manage risks and leverage opportunities effectively. The increasing complexity of globalized value chains reinforces the need for systematic issue management tools and approaches.
The workshop was hosted by Bertelsmann Stiftung and PWC. Claudia Knowbloch from the Emergia Institute supported the design and documentation. Results from the workshop will available on csr-weltweit.de.
11.9.2009 - First Inclusive Business Brown Bag Lunch in Berlin with MicroEnergy
For the kick off of the Berlin Inclusive Business Brown Bag series, MicroEnergy International invited experts to their office at TU Berlin. Noara Kebir provided some food for thought on the challenges of quality assurance and consumer protection in low-income markets. She illustrated the difficulties arising from plagiarism, lack of legal enforcement and market transparency with own experiences in the energy sector. The 14 participants, representatives from Emergia Institute, Genesis Institute, GTZ and PlanetFinance, discussed potential solutions, such as delivering services instead of products, MFIs as effective negotiators for quality assurance, and better information platforms, e.g. by using the internet or mobile telephony.
PlanetFinance invites to the next BrownBag lunch on November 13th. The Brown Bag Lunch series will take place quarterly in the premises of one of our partner organizations. If you want to participate in the event, please send an email to c.gradl@no-spam.emergia.de
August 2009
31.08.2009 - Martin Herrndorf teaches on micro-insurances during a Summer School on "Development Policy" at the University of Cologne
Emergia Associate Martin Herrndorf has been awarded a teaching assignment at the University of Cologne for the Summer School on "Development Policy" organised by the Teaching and Research Centre on Latin America. In the track on "Poverty Reduction and Social Security", he will introduce approach, principles and actor constellations for micro-insurance. He will work with students on the perspective of building up and fostering a micro-insurance sector in a specific Latin American country.
Further information on: www.lateinamerika.uni-koeln.de/summerschool2009.html
July 2009
13.7.2009 - Emergia directors participate in the Kick-off Workshop of the Case Research Programme of UNDP's Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative
The second stage of the UNDP Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative (GIM) kicked-off with a workshop for Case Writers and Reviewers. Around 50 people from more than 30 countries came together to discuss in interactive sessions the objectives of the research programme, the case selection and next steps.
Christina Gradl, co-director of the Emergia Institute, has been working as a consultant for GIM since 2006 and lead the development of the concept and the research design of this second stage. Aline Krämer, also co-director of the Emergia Institute, will coordinate case writers from Eastern Europe and the CIS for the programme. The cases will provide the empirical basis for a regional report.
All in all, the Case Research Programme will produce more than 50 cases from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe & CIS. The cases will be written by researchers from the respective countries and aim provide empirical evidence on how inclusive business models are created, how other actors contribute to the business and what economic, social and environmental results the business created. The overall objective of this research effort is to understand, enable and inspire the development of more effective inclusive business models around the globe that will help to create new opportunities for better lives for many of the world’s poor.
June 2009
23.6.2009 - Students discuss "What are the challenges and opportunities of micro-insurance?" at the LMU, Munich
30 Students from various backgrounds attended a workshop on the challenges and opportunities of business models for low-income markets with the example of micro-insurance at the Ludwigs-Maximilians-Universität, Munich. Claudia Knobloch (Emergia Institute) and Michael Anthony (Allianz SE) gave a general introduction to the subject. Thereafter, students developed strategies for an insurance company to enter low-income markets. The seminar was part of the series of events called "Business meets Ethics" and organised by the student network Sneep.
Claudia's presentation is available for download.
9.6.2009 - Jianghua Zhou and Genia Kostka present paper on public-private partnerships in China at the Joint Actions on Climate Change, Aalborg, Denmark .
Jianghua Zhou, Tsinghua University, and Genia Kostka, Oxford University, presented their newest research findings on public-private partnerships in China at the Joint Actions on Climate Change in Aalborg, Denmark. The authors presented the latest debates on BOP by Chinese Scholars, and argued that current concepts of BOP need to be adjusted when applied to the Chinese context. Findings suggest that in China both central and local governments have started to shift their poverty alleviation strategy towards relying on firms, including both state-owned as well as private firms. The arguments are based on two case studies - China Mobile (telecommunications) and Nanjing JiuKang (agricultural input sector) collected during fieldwork in China in 2009.
1.6.2009 - The Research Center for Design and Sustainability (UFPR) and the Emergia Institute launch idea competitions with low-income consumers in Brazil.
To develop new products and services for low-income consumers, the Research Center for Design and Sustainability (Núcleo de Design e Sustentabilidade – NDS) of the Federal University of Paraná (Curitiba, Brazil) currently conducts the research projects “Eco-Agregado” in partnership with the recycling company Soliforte. The project is funded by the Brazilian Innovation agency FINEP and Fundação Araucária. It is supported by the Emergia Institute, the TUM Business School and the NGO Alianca Empreendedora. Aline Krämer, Co-Founder of the Emergia Institute, coordinated and supported the implementation of the first phase of the project, which had the objective to unveil needs and aspirations of the target group and create first ideas for products and services. To give low-income consumers a voice and an active part already in the early stages of the product development process (the so-called “fuzzy-front-end”), idea competitions were conducted in two low-income neighborhoods to collect new product ideas for so far unattended needs. In total the idea competitions generated 48 ideas by low-income consumers, which will inspire the product designers involved on the subsequent phases of the project.
May 2009
20.05.2009 - Piera Waibel and Christina Gradl publish article on business opportunities in low-income markets in io new management
In io new management's special issue on innovation, Piera Waibel and Christina Gradl take a look at the innovation required to enter low-income markets. The key message: Serving the world poor as consumers can open new growth potential for companies from industrialized countries. However, business doesn't work 'as usual' in the slums and villages of the developing world. Successful businesses employ innovative models that leverage the strengths of other market players, including the poor themselves.
io new management is the leading Swiss management magazine. The full article can be accessed here.
19.05.2009 – Claudia Knobloch answered the question: “Is every slum a place for BOP-activities?” at the ICEP conference “Entwicklung findet Stadt” in Vienna.
120 experts from business, government, civil society and academia gathered for the Conference "Entwicklung findet Stadt" Siemens Forum in Vienna to discuss the challenges and opportunities of urbanisation in developing countries. Claudia Knobloch answered the question whether every slum was a place for business at the BOP. She confirmed the idea that poor urban areas offered many opportunities to include the poor into value chains. Slums are a hotspots of economic activity, albeit most transactions take place in the informal sector. But doing business in slums is not easy for outsiders: Formal businesses who aim at slum dwellers not only have to meet their needs, but also have to find innovative ways around widespread market constraints like fragmentary infrastructure or ineffective legislation.
The summary of all presentations and workshops is available here at the IBWE website.
Claudia's presentation is available for download.
April 2009
29.4.2009 - Regional UNDP GIM Initiative Eastern Europe and CIS kicks off with a working group meeting in Brussels
The UNDP regional office for Eastern Europe and CIS has launched its own Growing Inclusive Markets initiative. Through case studies on successful inclusive business models in the region as well as some market research data, the initiative seeks to raise awareness about the business opportunities of including poor and excluded people into value chains.
The initiative officially kicked off with a working group meeting in Brussels on April 29. The working group brings together representatives of donor organizations, business associations and academic institutions as well as the global UNDP GIM team. Christina Gradl acts as an advisor to the regional initiative. The working group provided feedback on the suggested selection of case studies and research approach. A report with the results of the research will be published early next year.
Christina blogged about the special challenges and opportunities for inclusive business in the region on the Unternehmen Armut Weblog.
March 2009
23.3.2009 - Christina Gradl presents findings of the UNDP report "Creating Value for All" to 400 participants of the International CSR Conference in Cairo.
400 experts from business, government, civil society and academia gathered for the International CSR Conference at the Marriott Hotel in Cairo to discuss the links between 'Investment and Responsible Business Practices'. Based on insights of the UNDP report "Creating Value for All", Christina Gradl presented the opportunities of developing inclusive business models. She also pointed to the constraint that challenge these models and promising strategies to find innovative solutions. UNDP is planning to implement the concept, for example via a project in the horticulture value chain.
20.3.2009 - Emergia Institute announces launch of German Primer on Inclusive Business for October 2009 in cooperation with BMZ, GTZ and DIHK
Many German companies can benefit from inclusive business development, and interest in this mostly untapped segment is growing. Currently, however, there is no German publication available that helps companies take the first steps into this new and challenging market. Emergia Institute is working to close this gap, and will publish a primer on inclusive business ('Entwicklungsgeschäfte') in October 2009. The German Ministry of Development Cooperation BMZ, the German Agency for Technical Cooperation GTZ and the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry DIHK support the publication.
More information on the project is available here.
February 2009
26.2.2009 - During a brownbag lunch, employees of the Bertelsmann Stiftung discussed opportunities and barriers of business approaches for poverty alleviation with Christina Gradl.
Christina introduced the idea that poverty alleviation and business development can go together, using a number of examples ranging from microfinance to health store microfranchsing. Participants were intrigued by the idea, which many felt to provide a more accountable, sustainable and promising method than traditional government-driven development approaches. Participants also raised concerns regarding the viability of the concept in difficult circumstances such as conflict or corruption.
The presentation is available for download.
21.2.2009 - Engineering students learn about inclusive business model development as part of a course on Energy Entrepreneurship and Rural Electrification at TU Berlin
Students from all over the worls, Inclusing India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Ivory Coast, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, attended a seminar on "Energy Entrepreneuership and Rural Electrification". The class forms part of the masters degree "Global Production Engineering" at Technischen Universität Berlin. As part of the seminar, Christina Gradl taught a class on innovative business models for low-income markets.