WBCSD-SNV Alliance: Creating inclusive business opportunities by linking local communities with big business

Call for contributions on the topic of "The Base of the Pyramid in Latin America"

Greenleaf Publishing invites contributions for a special issue of Greener Management International (GMI) on the topic of "The Base of the Pyramid in Latin America". The publication will focus on three themes: (1) the Base of the Pyramid (BoP) not only as
a new market for products and services, but also as a source for the co-creation of
new sustainable business ventures highlighting the role of local entrepreneurs; (2) the role of technology and innovation in meeting the needs of BoP customers; (3) the concept of sustainability within BoP strategies; considering the impact of economic growth and social pressures on our planet.

Reducing the risks of the poor through microinsurance: Allianz

Microinsurance in emerging economies represents a market of great potential growth and profitability. As insurance markets in many rich countries become saturated and growth prospects limited, insurance companies are looking to new opportunities in emerging markets. In India alone, more than 250 million people are in need of microinsurance. And worldwide, the Allianz Group (Allianz), a leading global provider of insurance, banking and asset management, predicts that by 2011 the microinsurance market will double the size it was in 2008.

The Allianz Group's work on microinsurance began in early 2005, as the Management Board of Allianz in Munich , Germany, realized that the South-East Asian Tsunami of December 2004 did not leave much of an impact on the balance sheet of the company, despite being one of the worst natural catastrophes in the last 100 years. As Heinz Dollberg, head of the Asia-Pacific division of Allianz, explains, "the risks faced by the poor are much the same as those for most individuals, but research has shown that they experience those risks with greater frequency and with a relatively greater financial impact."

Business Call to Action takes stock of inclusive business initiatives

Business leaders met at the World Economic Forum in Cape Town, South Africa, to take stock of the progresses achieved over the past year by the Business Call to Action, a global effort focused on challenging big businesses to move beyond philanthropy to implement inclusive business initiatives that apply their core business and skills in a transformative and scalable manner, which in turn will enhance growth and contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

At the meeting in Cape Town, companies celebrated the progress made so far, showcasing their success stories and lesson learned.The organizers of the event, along with African ministers, called on companies in Africa to sign and launch new business initiatives that promote sustainable development and combat poverty.

New tool released to estimate the positive contribution of business to the Millennium Development Goals

Do you want a simple snapshot of the way your company positively contributes to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)?

A recently launched tool by Business in Development (NCDO) and Sustainalytics does just this. Thanks to the online MDG Scan, companies can simply create an account (free of charge) on the website and insert key performance data related to the company’s presence in developing countries. The MDG Scan then converts this data into numbers of beneficiaries in developing countries whose lives have been positively affected by the company’s activities. Completing the MDG Scan enables participating companies to download a final report in which specific company results are reflected.

Although the MDG Scan uses company performance data to estimate the contribution to the MDGs, results are not exact measurements. The MDG Scan is developed as a simple model, dealing with a very complex economic reality. Important simplifications of reality are therefore inherent to the MDG Scan.

What is my brand’s footprint? The example of Unilever

Every day around 160 million people in 150 countries buy a Unilever brand. In 2005, Unilever set out to understand how these brands impact on people and the environment in the areas where they are sourced, produced, distributed and used. In their latest sustainable development review (issued March 2009), Unilever explains the company’s Brand Imprint program which aims to redefine brand value to include an understanding of the impact of brands such as Lipton, Axe and others on socio-economic development and sustainability. As Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, states in the introduction, this effort is helping the company embed "sustainability thinking into the day-to-day activities of our brand management and R&D teams."

The Brand Imprint program was started in addition to  the company’s extensive country level studies of the company’s impact on poverty reduction in Indonesia (with Oxfam) and on economic growth in South Africa (with INSEAD)as a way to look more specifically at how addressing social and environmental issues could enhance the value of brands and build opportunities for the business.  The company sees this program as critical to anticipating and adapting to consumer needs and demands.  As the company website states, “companies that can develop products that meet the functional needs of consumers while taking into account these social and environmental challenges will be better placed to grow than those that do not.”

¿Pueden las empresas contribuir a los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio?

¿Pueden, realmente, las empresas contribuir a los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio (ODM)? El debate en torno a la participación del sector privado como respuesta a la realidad del hambre o la pobreza en el mundo parece que empieza a superar la discusión de si esta cuestión le es propia o no, puesto que en el contexto de la globalización, todos los actores son interpelados por los retos globales a los que se enfrenta la humanidad. De ahí que el papel de las empresas sea considerado cada vez más preponderante en la solución de cuestiones que afectan las condiciones de vida y, a menudo, el sufrimiento cotidiano de la población mundial.

Por esto, el Instituto de Innovación Social de ESADE ofrece una serie de claves en su libro ¿Pueden las empresas contribuir a los Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio? (pdf, 128 páginas) con la finalidad de que las empresas contribuyan a lograr dichos objetivos.