|
Research Reports, eBooks and Ideas |
|
Monday, 09 April 2007 |
|
Whythawk does not only perform ratings. Analysts regularly work on ideas that help to enhance the informal sector and grow investment. The best of these are collated and published here for general discussion and debate. Some are ideas that have arisen from the blog and are presented here in a more detailed form. Some of the research is available only to subscribers  (in order to subscribe, first register), some is subject to copyright  , while the eBooks are released under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND License  . Each is so indicated. eBook files are PDF's and 50 - 150kb. Get the free reader from Adobe.
Sector Report Overviews Whythawk's purpose is not only to rate individual organisations but to aggregate these findings by related organisations and by region. This information is compiled into a sector report which can give an idea of trends, organisation effectiveness and concerns across that particular industry. We also track a Confidence Index which allows organisations to declare their faith in the support they receive from funders and legislators. Keynote Presentations | Unlocking the Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid | | Unlocking the Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid presents a view of the informal sector in South Africa in a way you may never have contemplated: as a vibrant, innovative and lucractive market that the vast number of commercial entities are ignoring. It is time to recognise this value and invest; for the good of the people in this market, as well as your own bottom line. | General ideas and challenges regarding promoting economic development | Bringing capital to small enterprise - Hermann Jeuschenak | | The predicament lies in balancing the risk and reward in an environment where the perceived risk of lending demands a premium the borrower cannot afford. Solutions therefore must see risk reduced to a level where the credit seeker can afford the interest charges while the credit grantor is adequately compensated. | | The Martians really care: four points to govern development - Gavin Chait | | Development, uncoupled to any clear objective, isn’t going to achieve anything other than a gradual senescence. It is like holding down a drowning man while making sure he has a pipe in his mouth so he can breathe. | | The poor hate trees, and other stories - Gavin Chait | | Poverty is caused by more than lack of money – it is also the poverty of ideas. Poor Africans live in poor countries where their politicians betray them and steal all the opportunities and money. Kenya, which produces no mosquito nets, has a 200% excise duty on imported mosquito nets which makes them unaffordable. The cheapest protection from malaria is out of reach of the majority of Kenyans for no good reason at all. | Wikineur: the thousand rand challenge | Wikineur.org | | Microfinance and microenterprise are now recognised as being foundational to generating the economic activity required to stimulate the poor to create their own wealth. Mohammed Yunus of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh has been the most instrumental in raising this awareness and was awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his achievements. Wikineur is an open resource, containing training materials as well as a wealth of business ideas and plans, which are aimed at microenterprise. The business ideas here are all set at approximately US$ 135 start-up capital. Wikineur is a project of Whythawk. | Beyond Awakening: the soul of the entrepreneur Some people can see the world as other than it is. Some of those people feel a deep urge to change the world; to make it closer to the world that they can imagine. Some people have the determination to overcome all obstacles and make the imaginary, real. Anyone who is prepared to turn dreams into reality, to lead change, is an entrepreneur. The art of leading change requires strategy. The Beyond Awakening series of ebooks is dedicated to enhancing and shaping that spiritual and physical journey. | The Entrepreneurial Continuum - Gavin Chait | | Entrepreneurs are as many and as variable as athletes or musicians. You may be the world's greatest endurance runner yet you would be completely outclassed in a short sprint. Just because you can play the trombone, doesn't mean you could take over from the violinist. Stick to what you're good at and bring in others who are expert at the things you need to help you. |
|
research reports 
