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By Darwin G. Amojelar, Reporter
THE World Bank wants the private
sector to focus on the poor in developing countries such as the
Philippines to bring them out of their misery.
“Addressing the unmet needs of
the BoP [base of the economic pyramid] is essential to raising
welfare, productivity, and income—to enabling BoP households to
find their own route out of poverty,” the Washington-based lender
said in a report titled, “Business and Poverty: Opening markets to
the poor.”
The World Bank estimates the
Philippines’ BoP market to number 23.6 million Filipinos with a
combined purchasing power of $13.09 billion. In estimating the local
BoP market, the multilateral lender used the 2000 Philippines Family
Income and Expenditure Survey.
In Asia, the BoP market
represents 83 percent of the region’s population and 42 percent of
its purchasing power—a significant share of Asia’s rapidly
growing consumer market.
The report said engaging the BoP
in the formal economy must be a critical part of any
wealth-generating and inclusive growth strategy.
“Many of those in the BoP, and
perhaps most, pay higher prices for basic goods and services than do
wealthier consumers—either in cash or in the effort they must
expend to obtain them—and they often receive lower quality as
well,” the World Bank said.
“For some services BoP
consumers lack access altogether. The high cost of being poor is
widely shared: it is not just the very poor who must walk long
distances for water or firewood, or who often pay more for the
transportation to reach a distant hospital or clinic for the
treatment, or who face exorbitant fees for loans or for transfers
from relatives abroad,” it added.
The report said the BoP market
analysis is intended to help businesses and governments think more
creatively about new products and services that meet this sector’s
needs.
Globally, about four billion
people who live in relative poverty have purchasing power
representing a $5-trillion market. The BoP market in Thailand stood
at $23.38 billion; Vietnam, $16.03 billion; Malaysia, $16.27
billion; and Indonesia, $6.17 billion.
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