World leaders have given the reduction of global poverty top priority.
And yet it persists. Indeed, in many countries whose governments lack
either the desire or the ability to act, poverty has worsened. This
book, a joint venture of a Harvard professor and an economist with the
International Finance Corporation, argues that the solution lies in the
creation of a new institution, the World Development Corporation (WDC),
a partnership of multinational corporations (MNCs), international
development agencies, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
In A Corporate Solution to Global Poverty, George Lodge and Craig
Wilson assert that MNCs have the critical combination of capabilities
required to build investment, grow economies, and create jobs in poor
countries, and thus to reduce poverty. Furthermore, they can do so
profitably and thus sustainably. But they lack legitimacy and risk can
be high, and so a collective approach is better than one in which an
individual company proceeds alone. Thus a UN-sponsored WDC, owned and
managed by a dozen or so MNCs with NGO support, will make a marked
difference.
At a time when big business has been demonized for destroying the
environment, enjoying one-sided benefits from globalization, and
deceiving investors, the book argues, MNCs have much to gain from
becoming more effective in reducing global poverty. This is not a call
for philanthropy. Lodge and Wilson believe that corporate support for
the World Development Corporation will benefit not only the world's poor
but also company shareholders as a result of improved MNC legitimacy and
stronger markets and profitability.
