The Business Solution to Poverty

The nearly three billion people living on two dollars a dayare not just the world’s greatest challenge—they represent an extraordinarymarket opportunity. The key is what Paul Polak and Mal Warwick call Zero-BasedDesign: starting from scratch to create innovative products and servicestailored for the very poor, armed with a thorough understanding of what theyreally want and need, and driven by what Polak and Warwick call “the ruthlesspursuit of affordability.” Polak has been doing this work for years, and Warwick hasextensive experience in both business and philanthropy. Together, they show howtheir design principles and vision can enable unapologetic capitalists tosupply the very poor with clean drinking water, electricity, irrigation,housing, education, health care, and other necessities at a fraction of theusual cost and at profit margins comparable to those of businesses in thedeveloped world. Promising governmental and philanthropic efforts to endpoverty have not reached scale because they lack the incentives of the marketto attract massive resources. This book opens an extraordinary opportunity fornimble entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate executives that will result notonly in vibrant, growing businesses but also a better life for the world’spoorest people.