Re-thinking how we help others

While in Uganda, there was a girl who I made friends with at the café, her name was Rita. She was there when the sun rose at 7am and didn’t leave till 7 or 8pm. The more I got to know her, I learned she had a 2 year old son and was working so that she could afford to send him to school.  

Coming from the US where school is free, it took me a moment to consider a world in which, if a parent can’t afford to send the child to elementary school, then they don’t go. Rita herself had only made it through a few years before she had to drop out.  

"How much does school cost per year?" I asked

"around $200 USD /year"

 My first instinct was to want to pay for her son to go to school. $200/year – is less than a dollar a day- or one pair of lululemon leggings plus a scrunchie- all of which I can do without. 

But, how would I get her the money? Would I do this forever? What about all the other woman similar to her? How could I help them all in a scalable way?

I quickly realized that paying wasn’t the solution to this.

If I really wanted to solve the problem, I would make sure that the café she is working for was paying her enough to not only support herself but to make sure she could send her kid to school. I would ensure labor laws were in place so that she was able to be home with her son when he needed her. I would make sure that she was being treated fairly.

By doing this, I would not just be solving the problem for her but for everyone who comes after her. 

Employment dignifies people. It enables them to care for themself and for those that they love.

Although I would love to work hands on with the government in Uganda ensuring policies and procedures are in place, change at this level is difficult, complex, and slow.

If only there was another way to solve this....

In the book, the Poverty Paradox, Clay Christiansen, Efosa Ojomo & Karen Dillon, talk about another, better way to solve this- Innovation - with a focus on Market Creating Innovations.

Market creating innovations

150 years ago, the United States was as impoverished, had child labor, and people spending most of their income on food just to survive.

But market-creating innovations started to change all that. The Ford Auto, the Singer sewing machine—innovations that made products affordable and accessible and had a snowball effect of creating jobs and even other industries, helping to build the infrastructure of the entire country.

An example of a marketing creating innovation is a noodle company in Nigeria. Providing a simple pack of noodles brought in millions of dollars in taxes, increased distribution, 8 thousand direct jobs, electricity and water treatment to certains areas.

"One of the key reasons market-creating innovations are so powerful is that they are more than just a product or a service. They are an entire system that often pulls in new resources, infrastructure, and regulations; and they create a sizable number of new jobs." Efosa Ojomo

The time is now

 This is why it is so crucial for us to use the trend of innovation as a catalyst to drive resources and attention to market creating innovations.

Corporate innovation isn't just about making your company better, it is about finding new ways to reach those who are forgotten.

It is a line in the budget that is designed for experimentation- don't miss this opportunity to change the world ?