Poverty is not the problem. It is a symptom of the problem. The problem is lack of access to services and products. One solution to this problem of access - access to capital for developing world entrepreneurs - has been addressed through the micro credit revolution. Other innovative solutions have been designed and are being implemented to address the problems of access to education. Inventive models to address access to medicines for diseases, such as AIDS and TB, are being executed. However, an entrepreneurial model that confronts the lack of access to services and products that address chronic conditions--such as pulmonary illnesses, gastrointestinal illnesses, visual problems, malnutrition, water scarcity, energy deficiencies, and the like--has not been effectively implemented at scale to date. Access can only be created if the product, place, price, promotion and people are working in concert to serve the rural poor in an appropriate manner that takes into account local, cultural, societal and geographic conditions. The lack of access not only affects problems, such as poor health and malnutrition, but also results in a staggeringly high negative economic impact at myriad levels. Through the development of the MicroConsignment Model, Community Enterprise Solutions has created a compelling solution to this problem.
Community Enterprise Solutions has successfully scaled this model nationally in Guatemala, and is scaling regionally in Latin America. This organization, working with key strategic partners, now seeks to create footprints in Africa and Southeast Asia in order to create a critical mass to scale globally. The goals are to continue to innovate, while also getting deeper in impact and broader in reach. Overall, over the next five years, Community Enterprise Solutions seeks not only to lead projects in these regions, but also to teach, train and equip other similar organizations, so as to create leverage. Most importantly, much like micro credit, the organization, through working with top universities, seeks to make MicroConsignment part of the development vernacular, whereby organizations from around the world can see successful practice and know what it is, where to go to learn about it, and who to work with to make sure it can work for them as well.