Archive for category: Business

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How Alternative Credit in Kenya Empowers Borrowers

Alternative Credit in KenyaKenya is often associated with safaris and national parks. Many may think of the Great Migration or the world-class athletes that come out of Kenya such as its marathon runners. With a country full of so much beauty, majesty and talent it is easy to become blind to the poverty that exists in it. However, alternative credit in Kenya is one approach that is helping expand access to finance for some borrowers.

Understanding the Credit-Access Gap

Poverty in Kenya is multidimensional, consisting of food insecurity, lack of access to clean drinking water and unemployment. More than 15 million people, approximately 30% of Kenya’s population, live in arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs). Between July and October 2026, around 2.7 million people in the ASALs were experiencing Crisis or worse acute food insecurity. More than 883,300 children aged 6-59 months in the ASALs and refugee camps were expected to require treatment for acute malnutrition between April 2026 and March 2027.

Economic pressures affect both rural and urban areas. According to World Bank assessments, approximately 800,000 young people enter Kenya’s labor market each year, while fewer than 100,000 secure formal, labor-law-protected jobs. Furthermore, World Bank economic projections warn that inflation and higher commodity prices carry the scenario risk of pushing between 1 million and 2.4 million additional Kenyans below the poverty line.

For many small-scale business owners, securing capital from traditional commercial banks remains difficult because of documentation, collateral requirements and a lack of formal credit history. Consequently, informal enterprises and self-employed individuals often operate without access to traditional banking channels.

How Alternative Credit and Digital Scoring Operate

Alternative credit is a type of non-traditional financing that is for borrowers who cannot normally access traditional bank lending. Several organizations are creating alternative credit routes in Kenya, helping small business owners and entrepreneurs receive access to funds for their businesses and ventures.

  • NCBA Bank and Enterprise Training: Commercial institutions like NCBA provide digital banking, insurance and cash flow guidance to small businesses. Partnering with Strathmore Business School to establish the Enterprise Development Programme, the bank has enrolled 354 customers in a 16-week curriculum designed to strengthen leadership and business management skills.
  • JUMO’s Digital Lending Platform: Operating since 2015, JUMO uses mobile wallet and cellular transaction data to build behavioral credit profiles for individuals who lack traditional pay stubs or bank accounts. Partnering with financial networks like Standard Bank’s Sustainable Finance Team, JUMO reports more than $10 billion in lifetime loan disbursements and over 300 million individual loans facilitated across its operational markets.
  • TransUnion and FICO Scoring Solutions: To help lenders evaluate thin-file borrowers, TransUnion Kenya utilizes alternative data sources such as mobile networks and digital wallets. While credit bureaus in other global markets have observed risk-predictability improvements of 20% to 30% and approval-rate increases of 15% to 20% using advanced scoring frameworks like CreditVision Variables, these tools assist lenders in managing portfolio risk while evaluating non-traditional applicants.

Conclusion

Expanding financial inclusion and alternative credit options can provide micro-entrepreneurs with capital to manage cash flow and invest in their ventures. However, credit also carries repayment obligations and financial risks. Rather than viewing borrowing as an automatic solution to poverty, responsible alternative credit can provide a potential pathway to livelihood support and economic participation.

– Lara Lewis

Lara is based in Wakefield, RI, United States and focuses on Good News and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Pexels

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Kazakhstan’s Economic Diversification and Technology

Kazakhstan's Economic DiversificationIn an attempt to diversify and expand its economy, improve long-term stability and potentially reduce poverty, Kazakhstan is turning to AI, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Kazakhstan has traditionally relied on fossil fuels, minerals and other raw commodities, leaving its economy vulnerable to fluctuations in global commodity prices. The country’s economic diversification beyond natural resources is therefore critical to achieving long-term economic stability.

Technology is now central to that strategy. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev described AI adoption as a “matter of national survival,” arguing that Kazakhstan must remain a key player within the global technological race. The country hopes to have a fully digital economy by 2029. Its ambition is not simply to create a technology sector, but to use technology to create new industries, better-paid employment and a more resilient economy.

Building a Digital Economy

Kazakhstan’s abundance of critical materials and energy resources, combined with its strategic position between Europe and Asia, provides a strong foundation for investment in digital infrastructure and advanced industries. Thirteen international transport corridors cross the country, and around 85% of rail cargo traveling between China and Europe transits through Kazakhstan.

Through economic diversification in the technological sector, Kazakhstan hopes to widen its job diversity, thus opening up greater employment possibilities. International investment is critical to this transition. The Tumar Fund, supported by the World Bank’s Fostering Productive Innovations Project and Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, encourages private investment into innovative businesses by matching allocated project funding with private investor contributions. The objective is not simply to finance individual startups, but to encourage an entrepreneurial culture capable of generating businesses and jobs outside traditional industries.

On March 13, 2026, the World Bank approved a $600 million loan to support private-sector-led growth, create better-paid jobs and strengthen economic resilience in Kazakhstan. Andrei Mikhnev, World Bank country manager for Kazakhstan, said that strengthening energy efficiency, expanding renewable energy, advancing digital connectivity and data protection, and improving access to social assistance would help create a “more dynamic, inclusive, and resilient economy.”

Technology and Employment

For technology to reduce poverty, infrastructure must translate into employment and higher incomes. Digital skills are therefore crucial to Kazakhstan’s strategy. According to the World Bank, around two-thirds of Kazakhstan’s population report having basic digital skills, while approximately 41% report intermediate skills.

Crucially, digital skills are associated with higher wages. People with basic digital skills in Kazakhstan earn around 25% more than those without them. Those with intermediate skills earn around 46% more, while workers with advanced digital skills earn around 50% more. Although these figures show an association rather than direct causation, they highlight the potential of digital skills to improve employment and income prospects. This association helps explain why investment in digital skills is an important part of Kazakhstan’s human-capital strategy and may improve access to better-paid work.

E-governance

Digitalization can affect poverty at several levels through creating jobs, improving wages, increasing productivity, and making access to public services more efficient. Kazakhstan’s technological transformation extends to e-governance. According to the country’s Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry, 92% of government services are available online, with 85% accessible through mobile devices. The government is now moving toward an AI-GovTech model, using integrated data analytics to inform and improve policy and public service provision.

By introducing a digital, data-driven employment system that tracks labor trends, maps investment flows, forecasts potential employment and assesses vulnerability, Kazakhstan hopes to spot key areas for development more easily. Digitalization is therefore being used not only to create economic activity but to identify vulnerabilities and reshape the economy itself.

Conclusion

Kazakhstan’s economic diversification is about more than joining the global AI race. It is a broader strategy to reduce dependence on volatile natural resources, modernize the economy, create new opportunities, and support long-term prosperity. In 2025, the economy grew by 6.5% and GDP exceeded $300 billion, according to President Tokayev. Meanwhile, accumulated net foreign direct investment surpassed $150 billion, with significant investment flowing into manufacturing, high-tech industries and deep processing.

Technology alone cannot eradicate poverty. Kazakhstan’s diversification strategy depends also on sustained economic growth, and strategies which ensure the benefits of technological growth reach the wider population.

While Kazakhstan’s economic diversification does not provide a simple blueprint that any other country can copy, its experience does raise a wider global question for other resource-dependent economies. Venezuela, like Kazakhstan, has historically relied on oil, leaving it vulnerable to global price fluctuations. However, technological development could potentially provide a similar route toward diversification for the nation.

– Cecilia Catmur

Cecilia is based in the UK and focuses on Good News and Technology for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Pixabay

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Microfinancing Magic in Sierra Leone: SDG 8 in Sierra Leone

SDG 8 in Sierra LeoneFor many women across Africa, a small loan represents more than a week of groceries or rent. In Sierra Leone, more than 56% of the population lives below the national poverty line according to the most recent national household survey, with the rate reaching 60% in rural communities.

Microfinance as a Tool for Change

For low-income businesspeople with limited access to startup funds, even $50 may springboard a successful business venture and help individuals overcome cyclical poverty. Better known as microfinance, this small-scale investment practice rose to fame in the 1970s and has since supported more than 140 million aspiring entrepreneurs across the globe. As a powerful poverty reduction tool, microfinancing success hinges on financial access paired with legal empowerment, consumer protections, and awareness of rights.

One organization actively realizing this goal is L.A.W.Y.E.R.S of Sierra Leone. Short for Legal Access through Women Yearning for Equality Rights and Social Justice, this Freetown-based organization has provided pro bono services to women who need legal support since 1997, reaching more than 10,000 women since its inception. By providing free clinics and defense on family matters, inheritance rights, disease prevention and career opportunities, they are working toward United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 8 in Sierra Leone: fostering inclusive, ethical work opportunities and economic growth.

Challenges in Microfinance

Despite these advances, recent headlines point to a more complicated reality. A 2019 investigation found that BRAC Sierra Leone, which had 46,500 loan borrowers, charged a 30% interest rate compared to an industry average of 22%. Coupled with unclear loan repayment information, many grantees began entering large debts as costs exceeded their weekly earnings. In an interview with The Borgen Project, L.A.W.Y.E.R.S President and Chairperson Menisa Sesay explained, “You have a lot of women in prison because of these microcredits. You will get someone locked up at the correctional center for as little as $100 debt… two years… three years.”

Even during microfinance court trials, some women have no legal representation due to cost barriers or unawareness of pro bono support. “Others never get the chance to share their business development since receiving the loan,” Sesay added. In these cases, courts receive an incomplete perspective of women’s endeavors and financial circumstances. This is one gap L.A.W.Y.E.R.S is bridging through free and timely legal representation for women in debt.

Education as a Solution

Sesay emphasizes that the main missing microfinance link is borrower education. Sierra Leone’s 2022 Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Act guarantees women equal access to credit, financial services, transactions, and financial products as a government priority. However, equal access to credit may not provide an equal shot at success without comprehensive education on loan management, repayment deadlines, credit scores and wage garnishment.

L.A.W.Y.E.R.S has taken a comprehensive approach to mitigating this problem, including the launch of microfinance workshops for new grantees, legal defense for those in peril and counseling for incarcerated women. Most importantly, the firm is drafting legislation to limit imprisonment for petty offenses of this nature, including small debts soon after loan issuance.

Osusu and Community-Based Solutions

Beyond traditional microfinance lies another common trend among Sierra Leone’s informal workers: Osusu. Osusu is a community-based savings practice where citizens pool money together to support one person at a time. It often occurs in markets, with a daily contribution amount and guaranteed payback for those who add to the pot. Alongside formal microfinance loans, traditional systems like Osusu offer another mechanism for expanding financial access, especially when partnered with financial literacy training.

As a lawyer and business owner of three companies, Sesay sees tremendous value in microfinance and its contribution to SDG 8 in Sierra Leone. In her words, “There are vast communities of investments and of need. A high amount of loan entrepreneurs who become successful, so added education for recipients will only improve the program’s success.” With heightened legal protections and greater training for borrowers, she is hopeful that the program will reach its full potential as a driver of opportunity for African women.

– Natasha Agarwal

Natasha is based in Philadelphia, PA, USA and focuses on Good News and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr

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The Most Powerful Anti-Poverty Tool? Competition Policy

Competition PolicyFighting poverty requires smart policy intervention. In 2023, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development advised competition authorities to prioritize essential markets that take up large portions of family budgets. In 2025, the World Bank’s Competition Advocacy Contest highlighted reforms in Georgia, Egypt and Mexico for producing measurable consumer benefits. Together, these cases show how competition policy can support poverty reduction.

Georgia: Market Concentration vs. Pharmaceutical Reform

Prior to 2022, Georgia’s pharmaceutical market exposed families to extremely high medicine prices. Connections between pharmaceutical wholesalers and retail pharmacy chains allowed a small number of companies to hold significant market power, with markups on some essential medicines ranging from 2,000% to 3,000%. Without safeguards such as mandatory generic prescribing, generic drugs could even cost more than brand-name alternatives. According to the World Bank, 9.4% of Georgia’s population lived below the national poverty line in 2024.

Between 2022 and 2025, the Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency introduced major reforms, including mandatory generic prescribing, digital price tracking and stronger quality controls. In August 2025, regulators identified eight companies with dominant positions and fined four for abusing their market power to impose unfairly high medicine prices. These interventions produced significant results. Average medicine prices fell by 40% to 45%, returning an estimated $73 million in annual savings to households. Lower out-of-pocket health expenses increased families’ real purchasing power, leaving more income available for other necessities. More affordable medicine can also help people protect their health, remain productive and keep children enrolled in school. This shows how competition policy and poverty reduction can be connected through lower prices for essential goods.

Egypt: Educational Exploitation vs. Antitrust Enforcement

Prior to 2023, Egypt’s education market was affected by anticompetitive practices. Powerful private institutions and suppliers used exclusive agreements, product bundling and price-fixing across textbook publishing and school uniform production, restricting consumer choice and increasing pressure on low-income households. World Bank data show that 33.5% of Egypt’s population lived below the national poverty line in 2021 to 2022.

In 2023, the Egyptian Competition Authority intervened against anticompetitive practices across textbook and school uniform markets. Markups on international schoolbooks fell by as much as 85%, while public spending on state textbook printing decreased by 21%. These reforms produced estimated household savings of nearly $1 billion over five years. Reforms were also expected to double or triple the number of school uniform suppliers and increase employment in the sector by as much as 50%. Reducing financial barriers to education can help break cycles of poverty and create greater long-term economic stability. Increasing competition can also benefit businesses and new market entrants by replacing restrictive arrangements with more open supply chains.

Mexico: Collusive Health Procurement vs. Institutional Sanctions

Between 2008 and 2015, collusion affected Mexico’s public health care system. Private companies rigged bids for blood bank services and laboratory diagnostics purchased by the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) and the Institute for Security and Social Services for State Workers (ISSSTE), two of the country’s largest public health institutions. Because these systems serve more than 50% of Mexico’s population, bid-rigging increased public costs and reduced how far existing health care budgets could go. World Bank data show that 29.6% of Mexico’s population lived below the national poverty line in 2024.

Mexico’s competition authority, the Federal Economic Competition Commission COFECE, investigated the practices, penalized the bid-rigging cartel and imposed approximately 626.5 million Mexican pesos in fines on 11 companies and 14 individuals. Following enforcement, blood bank service costs fell by nearly 30% and laboratory testing prices dropped by almost 5%. A 2024 ex post assessment, later highlighted by the World Bank, found that the harm prevented and fines imposed were worth more than four times the agency’s annual operating budget. More transparent and competitive procurement allowed the public sector to make better use of existing resources, leaving more funds available for medical care.

What Georgia, Egypt and Mexico Show

The experiences of Georgia, Egypt and Mexico demonstrate that markets dominated by cartels or entrenched monopolies impede economic opportunity and growth. Long-term economic progress requires public institutions that can prevent anticompetitive behavior, make public procurement more transparent, protect consumers and remove barriers that unfairly favor established firms.

Well-designed competition policy encourages businesses to innovate, improve productivity and use capital more efficiently. Productive companies can expand, create stable employment and generate income that supports local spending. Poorly regulated markets, by contrast, can become increasingly concentrated and raise costs for consumers.

Addressing global poverty requires political will and smart policies that strengthen governance and economic opportunity. Well-regulated markets can help low-income families gain purchasing power and stability while companies benefit from a larger and more reliable customer base.

Georgia, Egypt and Mexico illustrate how targeted competition policy reforms can make markets work more effectively for families, governments and businesses at the same time. When leaders establish fair rules, enforce them consistently and protect vulnerable populations from anticompetitive practices, families gain more of the stability and purchasing power they need to build their own way forward. Continued enforcement and reform can help extend these gains to more low-income households.

– Aarush Pomar

Aarush is based in Chanhassen, MN, USA and focuses on Business and Good News for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Unsplash

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Can Matcha Help Fight Poverty in Rural Japan?

Poverty in Rural JapanMatcha has become a global phenomenon, fueled by its distinctive green color and viral popularity on social media. Rising demand has pushed the Japanese tea far beyond its traditional market, with 22% of the United Kingdom adults swapping out their morning tea or coffee for a functional alternative like matcha, herbal blends or mushroom drinks. Behind the trend are rural communities in Japan facing declining populations, aging workforces and economic pressures on agriculture.

Rural Japan Faces an Agricultural Crisis

Many of Japan’s tea-producing regions face declining populations and aging agricultural workforces, with around 43% of Japan’s local districts threatened by depopulation. Without people, rural economies cannot be sustained and farming livelihoods cannot persevere.

Japan is becoming one of the most rapidly aging and depopulating countries in the world, especially in rural areas, where outmigration has contributed to the collapse of local communities. Despite government efforts to revitalize these areas, such as Chiiki Okoshi Kyoryokutai, also known as Local Revitalisation Cooperator, a program that pays urban residents to move to rural villages for one to three years to jumpstart the local economy, farmers continue to face significant challenges, many reaching retirement age.

The number of commercial tea-farming operations has fallen sharply. According to Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Agricultural and Forestry Census, there were 53,687 farming operations in 2000; in 2020, it dropped to just 12,325.

Can Matcha Revitalize Rural Communities?

With mounting economic pressure, the growing demand for matcha could offer a new source of income to help revitalize rural communities by providing farmers with opportunities to increase income, sustain farms, and support their local economy.

The matcha boom has driven up the value of the crop, creating the potential for higher farmer incomes and making tea farming more financially viable. However, whether producers benefit depends on how much of this increased value reaches them.

The Japanese government and agricultural organizations are also trying to help farmers keep up with these demands by looking for ways to expand tencha production while finding a solution to the workforce shortage.

A 2026 initiative in Shizuoka aims to increase tencha production while improving farmers’ earnings and developing the regional tea industry. The initiative provides producers with technical guidance and equipment to help them transition to tencha cultivation, creating a more stable supply of matcha’s key raw material while ensuring that more of the value generated by growing demand reaches farmers in rural Japan.

Simona Suzuki, co-founder of the Global Japanese Tea Association, whose focus is on the revitalization of Japanese tea, said the government is beginning to take steps to support farmers. “I think everyone has it in mind that we have to do something.”

Reducing Poverty in Rural Japan

Matcha’s global demand for higher-value agricultural products can create new economic opportunities in rural Japan and make a significant contribution to tackling rural poverty. However, its long-term impact will depend on whether farmers and local communities can capture a meaningful share of the industry’s growing value, while overcoming the aging workforce, labor shortages and production constraints threatening Japan’s tea industry. They are on their way to doing so.

– Clara Iglesias Romero

Clara is based in Galicia, Spain and focuses on Business and Good News for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Unsplash

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Reducing Poverty in Vietnam Through Economic Reform

Poverty in VietnamIn 1986, most of Vietnam’s population lived in the countryside and depended on subsistence farming with little access to markets, credit or modern health care. That year, the government introduced Doi Moi, a set of market-oriented reforms that decollectivized farmland and opened the economy to foreign trade. The changes set off one of the most significant declines in poverty in Vietnam ever recorded. Gross domestic product per capita climbed from less than $700 in 1986 to nearly $4,500 in 2023, according to the World Bank.

A Sharp Decline in Extreme Poverty

Extreme poverty in Vietnam, measured against the World Bank’s international line of $2.15 a day, fell from 45% of the population in 1992 to less than 1% in 2022, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Using the World Bank’s benchmark for lower-middle-income countries of $3.65 a day, the poverty rate declined further, from 14% in 2010 to about 4% in 2023.

Health and education outcomes improved alongside income. Infant mortality dropped from 32.6 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1993 to 12.1 in 2023, and life expectancy rose from 70.5 years in 1990 to 74.5 years in 2023, World Bank data show. National health insurance now covers 93% of the population.

Land Reform and Export Manufacturing Drove Growth

Two mechanisms account for much of the drop in poverty in Vietnam. First, Doi Moi returned control of farmland to individual households instead of state collectives, allowing farmers to sell surplus rice and other crops on the open market. Second, the government opened special economic zones and courted foreign manufacturers, turning the country into a hub for electronics, textiles and footwear production. The World Bank describes Vietnam as a middle-income economy that transformed from one of the world’s poorest countries within a single generation.

Millions Remain Vulnerable

Despite the sharp decline in extreme poverty in Vietnam, close to one in five people remain in a low-income bracket and could fall back into hardship after an economic shock or natural disaster, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reported. Ethnic minority households in the country’s northern mountainous provinces and rice-farming communities in the Mekong Delta face particular exposure, as remote terrain and increasing flooding limit access to jobs, credit and health services.

A Road Program Reaching Remote Communities

One initiative addressing this vulnerability is the World Bank-supported Local Road Asset Management Program, which ran from 2016 to 2024 across dozens of Vietnam’s provinces. Rather than funding new construction, the program focused on routine maintenance of existing rural roads and bridges, ultimately improving the lives of more than 11 million people. Close to 51,000 kilometers of rural roads received regular upkeep under the program, connecting thousands of communes, home to some of the country’s most vulnerable populations, to schools, hospitals and markets, the World Bank reported. Lower transport costs allow farmers in remote provinces to reach buyers, addressing one of the structural barriers that keeps pockets of poverty in Vietnam persistent even amid national growth.

A Model for Continued Progress

Vietnam’s experience shows that sustained, reform-driven growth combined with targeted infrastructure investment can transform a country’s fortunes within a single generation. As the World Bank continues to describe Vietnam as a remarkable development success story, the country’s next task is ensuring that the millions still living near the poverty line are not left behind by the same shocks that once defined its past.

– Rachel Ma

Rachel is based in Florham Park, NJ, USA and focuses on Business and New Markets for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Pixabay

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Empowering Fishing Communities in Mozambique

Fishing Communities in MozambiqueIn 2022, 81.4% of the population of Mozambique lived below the $3-a-day international poverty line, many of them in rural areas with limited industry opportunities. The Southeast African nation is home to 600 fishing communities spread across its coastline of more than 2,500 kilometers, and approximately 350,000 people rely on fishing as a source of income or food. From 2020 to 2024, fishery production increased from 390,587 to 502,895 metric tons. However, small-scale fisheries have struggled to finance necessary facilities and have called for more authority to enforce regulations locally. In the face of these difficulties, a community-focused management approach could be the way forward.

Mozambique Battles Food Insecurity

Mozambique faces food insecurity, with 1.2 million people experiencing high levels of acute insecurity categorized as phase three, “Crisis,” or above by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). Changeable weather conditions contribute, as rainfall and dry spells throughout the 2025 to 2026 agricultural season destroyed more than 300,000 hectares of crop-growing land and increased food prices. Improving fishery production could provide a pathway to better food security and transform livelihoods and opportunities in rural fishing communities in Mozambique.

Community Fishery Councils: Power to Local Collectives

Community Fishery Councils (CCPs) play a significant role in managing fishing at a local level. They help government fishing authorities effectively monitor and regulate fishing activities, promote sustainable practices and mediate conflict within their fishing communities. The impact of this local authority is significant. In Cabaceira Pequena, CCPs have implemented controls and closures of fishing grounds to allow regeneration of fish levels. This sustainable practice leads to a greater yield during fishing seasons and greater food security for the community.

In 2020, Mozambique’s government recognized CCPs as official legal entities, granting them powers to co-manage and share regulatory and decision-making authority. This encourages fishing communities in Mozambique to take ownership of their productivity and collaborate with authorities for effective management that will allow their industry to thrive.

The Smart Fisheries Co-Management Project

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has pioneered the Smart Fisheries Co-Management Project (SFC), which has been a major support to the activities of CCPs. Operating in Mozambique from 2021 until 2026, the project aims to promote effective co-management and collaboration between CCPs and governmental authorities, fostering sustainable use of resources and improved livelihood opportunities in rural fishing communities.

SFC worked closely with communities in Vilankulo and pushed for the signing of formal co-management agreements in 2024, further solidifying local empowerment. Activities included a variety of training programs. Some took the form of guidebooks, e-learning courses and in-person trainings that shared knowledge and skills aimed at improving co-management and promoting more efficient running of small-scale fisheries. Others provided practical training for fishing-adjacent livelihoods such as freediving, hospitality and ecotourism, broadening career opportunities beyond traditional roles and promoting local economic development. With support from SFC, the Escola Superior de Hotelaria e Turismo offered a 15-day course to 15 community members, all of whom received official certifications in sustainable tourism practices that enhance their career prospects in a growing industry.

SFC also provided equipment to CCPs that addressed communities’ limitations in fish processing, enhancing productivity and business opportunities. In 2025, it supported the CCPs of Macunhe, Mabandene and Guitine by providing 10 freezers, three motorbikes and 15 cool boxes; these resources enabled better preservation of fish and increased yield from ships spending longer at sea. Indeed, this strengthens Mozambique’s fishing sector and enhances fishing communities’ access to business opportunities.

Looking Forward

Despite the significance of empowered CCPs and the important work of SFC, progress remains to be made. Fisheries’ potential to drive economic growth is underutilized, representing only about 2% of Mozambique’s GDP. Despite their contributions to fisheries activities and adjacent industries, women and young people remain largely excluded from male-dominated CCP management. Proposed 30% inclusion quotas for women and young people in training and fishery management could help address this issue as part of efforts to streamline effective co-management.

– Hannah Rix

Hannah is based in London, UK and focuses on Business and New Markets for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr

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Dedicated Freight Corridor: Reducing Poverty in India

Reducing Poverty in indiaIndia’s large and growing economy moves millions of tons of raw materials, finished products and food across thousands of kilometers of railway tracks. Indian Railways uses freight trains to transport these goods. For decades, freight trains shared heavily congested routes with passenger services, limiting the speed and capacity of freight movement. The Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) was conceived to solve this issue. The DFC created dedicated freight-only railway lines to increase capacity and improve the movement of goods. On the existing shared trunk routes, the DFC was designed to relieve capacity utilization, which has run as high as 115% to 150%, reinforcing its importance. The benefits extend beyond railway efficiency. By reducing logistics costs and improving connectivity, the DFC can support investment, job creation and higher incomes, potentially reducing poverty for families in India.

Why Did India Need the DFC?

Before the DFC, India’s freight network suffered from congestion and low speeds, making it harder and more expensive to move goods—and these costs ultimately affect businesses, workers and low-income households. Freight trains previously never averaged more than 42 km/h. On the completed sections of the Eastern DFC, trains now run at an average of 75 to 80 km/h, with some trains reaching nearly 100 km/h. India’s rapidly growing economy placed additional pressure on already congested routes. Industries also needed reliable rail infrastructure to move raw materials and finished goods efficiently. Rising costs and delays also pushed some businesses toward road freight, adding pressure to India’s roads and highways.

DFC Reducing Poverty in India

The Dedicated Freight Corridor lowers logistics costs by moving goods more efficiently. Lower transport costs can encourage business investment, create jobs, and expand economic opportunities for low-income communities. Eastern Indian states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal benefit from these new corridors. The Eastern DFC connects several mineral- and agriculture-producing regions with major markets, improving access to industries and ports. New industrial activity can create employment and raise household incomes, particularly in regions connected to the freight corridors.

The DFC’s economic impact

The DFC has significantly improved freight movement and supported industrial development along its corridors. The area around the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai has seen increased investment due to the upcoming Western Dedicated Freight Corridor. Villagers near DFC construction sites earned between $20 and $31 per day through skilled and unskilled labor, according to the World Bank. The Western Dedicated Freight Corridor is home to the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, while the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor is home to the Amritsar-Delhi-Kolkata Industrial Corridor. Both corridors have generated substantial construction and operational employment along their routes. These employment opportunities can increase household incomes and expand economic opportunities for low-income communities connected to the freight corridors.

Land acquisition for the massive project presents a significant drawback however, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab. Furthermore, the project also faces the ongoing challenge of seamlessly integrating the exclusive high-speed tracks with the legacy Indian Railways network and private logistics network.

Conclusion

The Dedicated Freight Corridor demonstrates how infrastructure investment can do more than improve transportation. By strengthening supply chains, reducing logistics costs and expanding employment opportunities, it can support long-term poverty reduction while contributing to India’s economic growth. As the network continues to expand, it may offer valuable lessons for other developing countries seeking inclusive economic development.

– Dhruv Bandhu

Dhruv is based in Bengaluru, India and focuses on Good News and Technology for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Pexels

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How the Ghana Chocolate Industry Is Growing

Ghana Chocolate IndustryGhana is the world’s second-largest cocoa producer and one of the largest suppliers of cocoa beans to the global chocolate industry. Cocoa supports the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of farming families across the country. However, many cocoa farmers remain economically vulnerable, creating an opportunity for Ghana to capture more value from the crop it produces.

From Cocoa Beans to Chocolate

The Ghana chocolate industry is expanding as the country invests in domestic cocoa processing and chocolate manufacturing. By turning more cocoa beans into cocoa powder, butter, liquor and chocolate products within Ghana, the country can create economic opportunities beyond farming while retaining more value from its agricultural exports.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) found that Ghana earned $2.71 billion from cocoa exports in 2017, with approximately 80% of those exports consisting of raw beans. The organization also found that increasing domestic processing could create thousands of formal jobs.

Cocoa and Poverty Reduction

The expansion of the Ghana chocolate industry matters as cocoa farming has historically played a role in reducing poverty. According to the World Bank, the poverty rate among cocoa farmers fell from approximately 60% in 1991 to 24% in 2005 as cocoa production expanded.

Despite this progress, poverty remains a significant concern in Ghana. The World Bank reports that more than 20% of the population continues to experience poverty, with poverty rates exceeding 50% in some northern regions.

Cocoa farmers face additional financial challenges. The International Cocoa Initiative reports that Ghanaian cocoa farmers earn approximately $0.40 to $0.45 per person per day from cocoa, with cocoa accounting for about two-thirds of farmers’ household income. Small farms, low yields and high input costs can make it difficult for farming families to build financial security.

Expanding the Ghana chocolate industry cannot eliminate rural poverty by itself. However, increasing the amount of cocoa processed domestically could create additional employment and economic activity while strengthening demand for cocoa produced by Ghanaian farmers.

COCOBOD Invests in Farmers

The Ghana Cocoa Board, or COCOBOD, oversees cocoa production, marketing, quality control and industry development. Its programs also aim to improve farm productivity and farmer livelihoods.

COCOBOD reported in 2024 that it had rehabilitated 74,813 cocoa farms covering more than 67,000 hectares. Those farms belonged to 56,105 farmers. Another 44,480 rehabilitated farms, owned by 28,510 farmers, had begun producing cocoa.

COCOBOD also reported that 792,954 cocoa farmers and their households and dependents had been registered in its farmer database. The system allows the organization to better track farmers and improve the distribution of resources.

These programs address poverty at the farm level by supporting the productivity of an industry on which rural households depend. Higher productivity can give farmers the opportunity to generate more income from existing farmland.

Processing Creates Jobs

Domestic processing adds another economic layer to Ghana’s cocoa sector. The ILO studied two cocoa processing companies in Ghana to estimate the employment effects of expanding the industry.

The study found that cocoa processing creates formal jobs in manufacturing, but that the industry remains relatively capital intensive. The ILO estimated that processing 40% of Ghana’s cocoa before export could create approximately 4,000 permanent jobs directly in cocoa processing.

The jobs would include positions requiring different levels of skills depending on the technology used at processing facilities. The ILO also found that processing jobs tend to offer higher-quality employment, including longer-term positions and social security benefits.

The Ghana chocolate industry can create additional opportunities beyond processing plants. Manufacturing chocolate products requires packaging, transportation, marketing and other inputs, connecting cocoa production to a broader domestic supply chain.

Partnerships Strengthen Farmer Livelihoods

International organizations have also developed programs focused on the financial security of Ghanaian cocoa farmers. The World Cocoa Foundation, for example, has supported initiatives involving financial services and income diversification.

One World Cocoa Foundation-supported project in Ghana created 41 village savings and loan associations across 24 communities. The groups included 1,132 members, 84% of whom were women. Participants collectively saved $176,122, while $90,979 was distributed through loans.

These savings groups give farmers and their families access to financial tools that can help cover farm expenses and household needs. The program illustrates how economic support can complement efforts to increase agricultural productivity.

Building More Value at Home

Ghana’s cocoa sector demonstrates how agricultural production can contribute to poverty reduction while creating opportunities for further economic growth. Cocoa farming helped reduce poverty among cocoa-producing households during earlier periods of expansion, while new investments in processing could create additional employment and economic activity.

The Ghana chocolate industry still faces challenges, including low farm productivity, high production costs and fluctuations in global cocoa markets. Domestic processing alone will not guarantee higher incomes for farmers.

However, the ILO’s employment projections and COCOBOD’s investments in tens of thousands of farms show measurable opportunities within the sector. By expanding processing alongside programs that improve farmer productivity and financial resilience, Ghana can retain more economic value from its cocoa and create opportunities for the communities that produce it.

– Camille Utter

Camille is based in Seattle, WA, USA and focuses on Business and Technology for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr

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Fiji’s Coral Restoration Economy Reducing Poverty

Fiji's Coral Restoration EconomyHealthy coral reefs are more than environmental assets in Fiji; they are economic lifelines for thousands of families. People, the environment and cultural heritage are deeply interconnected, but the changing climate, overfishing, coastal development and pollution are putting pressure on reefs that support food security, tourism, fisheries and local economies.

The stakes are particularly high for people living in poverty. According to the Asian Development Bank, 29.9% of Fiji’s population lived below the national poverty line in 2019. For low-income coastal households, a decline in reef health can mean fewer fish to catch, less income from fishing and tourism, greater exposure to storms and coastal erosion. These households often have fewer financial resources and fewer alternative livelihoods to fall back on when marine resources decline.

Fiji is responding by developing what can be described as a coral restoration economy: an approach that treats healthy reefs as economic infrastructure and invests in businesses and conservation projects that protect them. The goal is not simply to restore ecosystems, but to create jobs, strengthen food security, diversify incomes and make coastal communities more resilient.

Why Coral Reefs Matter to Communities Living in Poverty

Coral reefs are closely tied to Fiji’s food supply and livelihoods. Island communities obtain about 75% of their dietary protein from the ocean, while small-scale fishing provides food and income for coastal households. Reefs also support tourism and protect communities, infrastructure and farmland from storms and erosion.

When coral ecosystems deteriorate, fish habitat can decline, reducing catches and making fishing less reliable. Tourism businesses can also lose income when reefs become less attractive to visitors. For households already living on limited incomes, these losses can mean reduced access to food, lower earnings and greater financial insecurity.

The connection between reef health and poverty is particularly important because many coastal households depend on several benefits from the same ecosystem. A healthy reef can provide food for a family, income from fishing and tourism, and protection from coastal hazards. Losing those services simultaneously can leave vulnerable households with few alternatives.

How Fiji’s Coral Restoration Economy Is Creating Jobs

Investing in coral reefs can create employment in conservation, tourism, fisheries, agriculture and other parts of the blue economy. The Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) and the United Nations (U.N.)  Joint Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Fund back Fiji’s Investing in Coral Reefs and the Blue Economy program, which uses blended finance to fund reef-positive businesses and sustainable livelihoods.

The program has set targets including hundreds of new jobs, benefits for tens of thousands of people and improved management of coral reef ecosystems. These are projected impacts, not outcomes the program has already achieved.

One example is Beqa Adventure Divers, which works with Galoa Village around Fiji’s Shark Reef Marine Reserve. The company employs local villagers as commercial divers and supports marine conservation, while a reserve levy from dive customers provides a recurring income for the village. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) reports that fish populations have increased within the reserve and neighboring reefs have experienced increased fishing yields.

Beqa Adventure Divers also reports contributing more than 500,000 Fijian dollars (about $220,000) directly to grassroots communities and training more than 50 diving professionals. Its youth program has helped school leavers develop skills for employment in the tourism industry.

Investing in Reef-Positive Businesses

Fiji’s coral restoration economy extends beyond tourism. GFCR-supported businesses are addressing the causes of reef degradation while generating commercial activity.

Fertile Factory & Co., for example, is developing a natural fertilizer from green waste and manure to reduce reliance on synthetic fertilizers and agricultural runoff that can damage reefs. Mango Fish is developing land-based aquaculture to increase domestic fish supplies while reducing pressure on coral reefs, with revenue supporting coral gene banks and locally managed marine areas.

The financing model aims to attract further investment. The Joint SDG Fund program has allocated about $5.5 million alongside approximately $4.7 million in co-financing to leverage up to $50 million in additional investment.

Lessons for Other Countries

Fiji’s experience shows that conservation can deliver economic benefits when local communities have a direct interest in protecting natural resources. Indonesia and the Philippines are developing similar approaches through ecotourism, sustainable aquaculture, marine protected areas and other reef-positive enterprises.

Coral restoration alone cannot eliminate poverty, but Fiji shows how environmental investment can address several development challenges at once. For other coastal nations facing changes in the climate and persistent poverty, the lesson is clear: protecting nature does not have to compete with economic development. When investment centers on the people who depend on ecosystems, healthy reefs can become the foundation for stronger and more resilient communities.

– Anna Morin

Anna is based in Fairfield, CT, USA and focuses on Good News and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr