Mastercard and Unilever Join Forces to Empower Small and Micro Businesses in Emerging Markets
01 March 2017 - 6:00PM
Business Wire
Aiming to advance inclusive growth through
digital technology and insights
At Mobile World Congress, Mastercard and Unilever today
announced a strategic partnership to collaborate on a range of
joint initiatives aimed at empowering small and micro businesses in
emerging markets. By combining their expertise and reach, the
companies intend to unlock economic growth and further advance
specific Sustainable Development Goals such as poverty reduction
and sustainable cities and communities.
This Smart News Release features multimedia.
View the full release here:
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During the World Economic Forum's Annual
Meeting in Davos, Her Majesty Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, UN
Secretary-General's Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for
Development (center) witnessed Ajay Banga, president and CEO of
Mastercard (left), and Paul Polman, Chief Executive of Unilever
(right), signing a strategic partnership designed to advance
financial inclusion efforts by empowering small and micro
businesses in emerging markets. (Photo: Business Wire)
According to the World Bank, there are somewhere between 365 and
445 million micro-, small and medium enterprises in the developing
world, representing the economic backbone of many local
communities. Yet, the true potential for these businesses remains
untapped. Some of the biggest barriers for their further growth
include limited market information, poor access to money, and a
lack of financial management skills.
Matching Unilever distribution network with digital payments
from Mastercard
By matching up Unilever’s network of distributors in developing
countries with digital payment and acceptance solutions from
Mastercard, technology resources will be activated to drive
inclusive growth at greater scale.
As a first step, Mastercard and Unilever will explore ways to
enable better access to formal financial tools for smaller retail
outlets while also building entrepreneurship capacity, particularly
for women and girls. Additional focus areas may include joint
efforts to increase the usage of electronic payments across both
wholesale and retail locations.
“Too many small merchants and micro entrepreneurs are stuck,
like their customers, in a cash economy that doesn’t work for
them,” said Ajay Banga, president and CEO, Mastercard. “With
Unilever, we can bring a unique combination of technology and
know-how to help these shop owners build a better future and
serve their customers who are themselves on a path towards
financial inclusion.”
Paul Polman, Chief Executive, Unilever added: “Strategic
partnerships such as this are critical to helping us improve our
business and positively impact the lives of 5.5 million people by
2020. By working together, we can have a much greater impact in
emerging markets, empowering small scale enterprises and bringing
about the transformative change necessary to meet the aims of the
Sustainable Development Goals and our business.”
First pilot project in Kenya
In Kenya, the companies are jointly designing a program to
enable sustainable growth of small retail entrepreneurs. By
digitizing the processes of buying supplies and selling goods small
vendors will gain access to low-interest credit. This will empower
them to better answer shopper demand and grow their business while
upskilling themselves through basic insight tools.
Download our Mobile World Congress 2017 app or
find a complete list of Mastercard news announcements in our
Digital Press Kit. Check out our Periodic Table of Payments to
brush up on your payments knowledge. Follow us
@MastercardNews or by using the hashtag #MWC17 to join the
conversation.
About Mastercard
Mastercard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology
company in the global payments industry. We operate the world’s
fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers,
financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in
more than 210 countries and territories. Mastercard products and
solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping,
traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more
secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter
@MastercardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction
Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement
Bureau.
About Unilever
Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of Food, Home
Care, Personal Care and Refreshment products with sales in over 190
countries and reaching 2 billion consumers a day. It has 169,000
employees and generated sales of €52.7 billion in 2016. Over half
of the company’s footprint is in developing and emerging markets.
Unilever has more than 400 brands found in homes around the world,
including Persil, Dove, Knorr, Domestos, Hellmann’s, Lipton,
Wall’s, PG Tips, Ben & Jerry’s, Magnum and Lynx.
Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan commits to:
- Helping more than a billion people take
action to improve their health and well-being by 2020.
- Halving the environmental impact of our
products by 2030.
- Enhancing the livelihoods of millions
of people by 2020.
Unilever was ranked number one in its sector in the 2016 Dow
Jones Sustainability Index. In the FTSE4Good Index, it achieved the
highest environmental score of 5. It led the list of Global
Corporate Sustainability Leaders in the 2016
GlobeScan/SustainAbility annual survey for the sixth year running.
Unilever was ranked the most sustainable food and beverage company
in Oxfam’s Behind the Brands Scorecard in 2016 for the second
year.
For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit
www.unilever.com. For more information on the USLP:
www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170228006855/en/
Mastercard CommunicationsBernhard Mors, + 1
914-325-9676bernhard.mors@mastercard.comorUnilever
CommunicationsLaura Misselbrook, + 44 7825 049
163laura.misselbrook@unilever.com
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