Date of talk or publication:
November 2005

Speaker Name / Title:
John Paul

Organization:
World Resources Institute

Description:
Despite their best efforts, government and NGO programs have generally failed to achieve the scale and sustainability necessary to provide adequate and affordable healthcare to many living below the poverty line. But as the Time Global Health Summit recently illustrated, the role of the private sector in improving the delivery of healthcare in developing countries is still being debated. Although private sector strategies may improve efficiencies and lower costs, some fear that turning healthcare entirely into a consumer service will marginalize the poor even further. There is also the question of whether or not providing healthcare to low income communities can be done profitably.

The debate may finally be settled based on the success of several new business models that are blurring the line between NGOs and the private sector. This report highlights a number of innovative enterprises that leverage cross-sector partnerships to provide affordable healthcare to the poor. They are organized in four broad categories: franchised networks that provide health services, ventures that produce health-related consumer products, enterprises that provide financial services and health insurance, and entities that are using the latest technologies to provide world class healthcare.