In fighting poverty, there's a fortune to be had

摘要

Some fortunes can be found in the unlikeliest places. Take the developing world, for example. Long a place where businesses focused on philanthropy and social responsibility, it's now becoming an area where businesses focus on business. Billions of people there live on less than $3,000 a year (a sector termed the base of the pyramid), but that market could be $5 trillion and growing, according to the World Bank's International Finance Corp. So that geographical region is an appropriate area for the focus of this year's international edition of ISE magazine. And that's where Ted London and Colm Fay take us with their cover story, "Making Money by Fighting Poverty." Regardless of income level, everybody needs food, shelter, healthcare and other services - things businesses in developed areas provide in abundance. So it stands to reason that enterprises could provide such services, increase employment, fight poverty and make a few bucks - a win-win-win-win.