By Bharathi Ramasubramanian

American political scientist Samuel P. Huntington, in his work The Clash of Civilizations, famously stated that cultural and religious identities would be the main sources of conflict in the post-Cold War era. An assessment of conflicts over the past two decades, from the Bosnian crisis and the Rwandan genocide in the early 1990s to the ongoing crisis in Darfur and Israel/ Palestine, shows the accuracy of his prophecy.

A key to post-conflict reconstruction is the development and strengthening of local institutions. It is often the case that local civil society organizations relying heavily on foreign donors tend to adapt their work to outside demands. This dilutes reconstruction, and efforts become increasingly disconnected from their beneficiaries, members and communities. Effective post-conflict development requires a clear understanding of the dynamics of the conflict-torn community and some success stories prove that local communities know best how to create opportunity for themselves and rebuild their towns and villages. » Continue reading “Post-Conflict Development: From the Bottom Up”

Everyday this week, we bring to you some key findings of our Indian Social Enterprise Landscape Survey.

Sectors to Watch

Education
Sector with a track record of profit
The Education sector has shown a marked degree of financial stability and growth potential. There are two key elements. First, the sector represents the highest number of profit-making enterprises (38%) among others, and also has one of the lowest numbers of loss-making entities (24%). Second, we observed a good growth potential; 38% of education enterprises are breaking even — which means the number of profit-making enterprises in this sector could increase in the coming years.

Health
Sector with large growth potential
Although the sector currently produces a very small number of profit-making entities, it has the lowest percentage (13%) of loss-making enterprises. Most importantly, at 73%, the Health sector has the largest segment of break-even businesses. If/when these enterprises begin to turn a profit, the Health sector could sustain a multitude of successful, profit-making enterprises.

Rural Development
Sector to watch out for future growth
Despite the fact that the largest number of social enterprises are in this field, it is the biggest loss-making sector at the moment. However, Rural Development demonstrated the largest revenue increases last year, so there could be more surprises in store.

The survey report, which offers an in-depth analysis of the results, is available for INR400/US$10. Just click the Social Enterprise Landscape Survey Report banner on the top of our website – www.beyondprofit.com or send an email to Asako Matsukawa at publications@intellecap.com.

See other data sets from the Social Enterprise Landscape Survey
Revenue Stream
Profitability