Here’s a great video from the TED Talks (technology, entertainment design) series. Via My Money Blog. Every video I’ve seen so far on the TED Talks site has been amazing and inspiring.
Jacqueline Novogratz is the charismatic founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit that takes a business-like approach to improving the lives of the poor. In this talk, she applauds the heightened interest in Africa, but argues persuasively for a new approach to foreign aid: “The question isn’t ‘how do we fix this?’ The question is ‘How can we help Africans to do this for themselves?'”
Its a wonderful video. Hope combined with business sense and adapting to local conditions. A non ideological and practial approach to development in the 3rd world. Loved the sweater story. Was sad about the order of importance of benefits in selling nets to protect children against malaria.
Here’s Acumen Fund’s (a global nonprofit global venture fund) mission statement
We seek to prove that small amounts of philanthropic capital, combined with large doses of business acumen, can build thriving enterprises that serve vast numbers of the poor. Our investments focus on delivering affordable, critical goods and services – like health, water and housing – through innovative, market-oriented approaches.
I hope there are more non profits like this. I like her central idea of combining proven businees model and creating solutions that are adapted to local conditions that are sustainable and scalable, that’s the future of development. Not the unfortunately all to often model of western countries providing corporate welfare to 1st world businesses to sell their products overseas at low cost and wiping out local industries in the process.