UNDP / The Business Call to Action

Description What is done in the programme or project and why, what results are pursued, who benefits from the activities and who are involved in the implementation.

The Business Call to Action (BCtA), launched in 2008, is UNDP's global initiative that aims to accelerate progress towards the development goals by challenging companies to develop inclusive business models for poor and marginalized people in developing countries. New inclusive business must have potential for both commercial success and development impact in the form of socially and environmentally sustainable development. The companies' projects selected to BCtA are required to show clear measurable results and financing in place in addition to commercial potential and development impact; BCtA doesn't support projects financially but offers a platform for the selected business projects to increase and scale up partnerships globally. 94 companies have so far joined the initiative. Inclusive business models and partnerships aim at empowering the poor and marginalized people into active consumers, producers, subcontractors, distributors and innovators in economic activity. The business models mean new ways of organizing the production, distribution, customer and stakeholder links as well as value chains of companies so that the poor and marginalized people in developing countries benefit from and participate in the business activity. The business models can focus on any sector, such as food production, teaching methods, health care and environmnental protection. BCtA's short-term results will be by 2016: 1) Increase the number of companies with inclusive business commitments; 2) Increase linkages between inclusive businesses, funders, and other resources; 3) Improve tools and methods for measurement of inclusive business impact; 4) Create and disseminate more robust evidence on inclusive business; and 5) Support country-level mobilization around specific development issues. The projects to be selected in BCtA are human rights based so that the companies develop the business models together with beneficiaries in an inclusive manner. BCtA's activities support many human rights, incl. right to decent work and adequate standard of living. BCtA's activities can, depending on the project, also advance many other economic, social and cultural rights.