Washington, DC, USA, September 22, 2016—
In a new report released today, IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, demonstrates that companies across the globe can both increase profitability and accelerate poverty reduction by developing untapped markets among the poor.
The report, Built for Change: Inclusive Business Solutions for the Base of the Pyramid, highlights how five companies shifted into new markets while engaging with the poor across a range of industries, including financial services, healthcare, education, and agriculture.
“Sixty years ago, IFC was created to combine development impact with profitability. The companies described in this report embody that concept. They have been built to create change in their communities and around the world,” writes Philippe Le Houérou, IFC Executive Vice President and CEO in his foreword to the report.
There are 4.5 billion people around the world considered to be living at the base of the economic pyramid because they lack access to basic goods and services or live on $8 or less per day. Over more than a decade, IFC has committed $14 billion to 500 inclusive businesses that work directly with this group.
The companies profiled are: bKash, a mobile financial services company with 23 million customers that brings the unbanked in Bangladesh into the formal financial system; Bridge International Academies, a network of more than 470 low-cost primary schools in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia; MicroEnsure, a microinsurance solutions provider serving over 40 million customers globally; NephroPlus, India’s largest private provider of dialysis with prices 40 percent lower than competitors; and Probiotech, an agribusiness linking Nepal’s remote, small-scale farmers into its supply chain.
The report details how the companies were founded, how their senior executives adapted to challenges, and how they expanded to new markets. Among the findings, companies need to plan for scale up-front, focus on low-cost delivery, educate their customers, invest in capacity building, and forge smart partnerships.
“The innovative entrepreneurs leading these five companies provide evidence that there are untapped business opportunities in serving poor customers who are often overlooked by existing businesses,” says Eriko Ishikawa, Global Head of the Inclusive Business Team at IFC.
The report was launched at the 2016 Business Call to Action Forum in New York, held in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our six decades of experience to create opportunity where it’s needed most. In FY16, our long-term investments in developing countries rose to nearly $19 billion, leveraging our capital, expertise and influence to help the private sector end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
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