How Will Ban Ki-Moon Save The World
As Ban Ki-moon begins his tenure as secretary-general of the United Nations, the world’s poor continue to cry out for help and hope. One-sixth of the world’s population lives in “deep poverty”—generally defined as surviving on half or less of the annual income of those at a nation’s poverty line. More than a trillion dollars spent by bilateral and multilateral organizations were supposed to help improve people’s lives have often been lost to governments that lack either the desire or the ability to reduce poverty within their borders. Several years ago, world leaders gathered in Monterrey, Mexico, and gave poverty reduction top priority. They committed themselves to halve the number of people living on less than $1 a day by 2015. They realized that poverty is the seedbed of terrorism and the spur to migrants hammering at the gates of Europe and America.
The goal of poverty reduction will not be reached unless the world tries something new. It is clear from the experience of countries that have been most successful in reducing poverty—Japan, China, Singapore, South Korea, and Botswana, for instance—that the creation of profitable businesses is the key. They provide the jobs, income, and motivation for education and individual development that raise standards of living.
Multinational corporations can play a key role by connecting local businesses to world markets, credit, and technology. Here’s where Ban and the United Nations can play a part. A nonprofit World Development Corporation could be formed to identify and design profitable projects in poor countries in which teams of multinationals would collaborate with local partners. It would bridge the gap that now exists between multinationals and other development agencies, as well as facilitate cooperation between these business and NGOs.
This concept offers multinationals a mechanism to do well with minimum risk and maximum efficiency. It also provides them with a means to improve political stability in potentially volatile territories. Harvard research shows that many multinationals find that their activities in regions struck by poverty act as powerful magnets for attracting bright young managers. There is growing evidence that companies that have innovated to ensure effective environmental safeguards, greater eco-efficiency, better organizational health and safety, and improved cultural protections have benefited from better political support and higher profits. The same will be true of companies that play an explicit role in the alleviation of poverty.
