
In its National Development Plan, South Africa has pledged to provide all its people, rich and poor, with access to information communication technologies.
Apartheid South Africa was all about discrimination. White supremacy ran so deep that black inferiority was enforced by ensuring that the best and perhaps only sporting facilities were reserved for and provided to white citizens. We zoom in on what the situation with sporting facilities looks like in the new South Africa in rural areas, and what this means to rural youth in Limpopo.
Freedom of expression, of creativity and of association was not a given in pre-1994 South Africa. Redwood is a band made up of youths, mostly from rural Limpopo, expressing themselves in their music. We learn what it means to them to have such liberties in South Africa and how they want to make a living out of these “rights.”
The 16th International Business Forum took place this past October in Istanbul. It hosted many guests from emerging economies, a number of whom, naturally, were from Turkey. In terms of business, the best thing the republic can do for itself is ensure that its sizable youth population gets greater access to entrepreneurship. ISTANBUL, Turkey – As with other areas in the surrounding region, entrepreneurship has become a coal-hot issue for the Turkish government. In its eyes, it stands as the opportune nation for conducting business, as it boasts a modest corporate tax rate, low entry barriers, sky-high levels of tourism, a premium location, a close to double-digit growth rate and, most important, a very large, tech-inclined youth populace.
As a way to reverse harrowing global youth-employment numbers, youth entrepreneurship is seen as a bright light at the end of a very long tunnel. But how viable of a solution is it? ISTANBUL, Turkey — The numbers are terrifying. According to recent research conducted by The Economist, around 24.4 percent, or about 290 million, of the world’s young people are currently unemployed. No wonder they’ve been dubbed the Jobless Generation.
Mini-Series: Impact Istanbul features conference highlights, round-ups, interviews, Q&A’s, and speaker profiles. It is part of our International Business Forum 2013 live coverage. This time, Apolline Nassour asks: Do youth have a voice in shaping the future of inclusive businesses? International conferences, especially those focusing on business, often hold endless talks about youth – as a market, as future employees, or as stakeholders. Yet most of the time, you’ll rarely find actual young people invited to participate.
Let’s face it, failure sucks. Failing is neither particularly fun nor particularly rewarding. And yet entrepreneurs do it all the time. According to a recent study from Harvard, three-quarters of venture-backed start-ups fail. At the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions last week, failure and the resilience required to bounce back from it were discussed as necessary requirements for future entrepreneurs.
Human capital contracts are a new and innovative method to finance university and post-graduate education. These equity-like arrangements could provide a solution to education accessibility issues for students in developing countries. In 2008, four professors from the Harvard Business School published a book entitled Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector. They suggest that a business-like approach in the social sector would help to maximize its impact and value.