India top-most country for presence of social entrepreneurs: Schwab Foundation study

Social entrepreneurs working with the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship have distributed USD 6.7 billion in loans or value of products and services, improving lives of more than 62 million people in 190 countries, and India is the top-most country in terms of their presence, a new study showed on Friday.

These social entrepreneurs have also helped mitigate more than 192 million tonnes of CO2 and improve education for more than 226 million children and youth.

Besides, they have helped provide energy access for more than 100 million people, and have driven social inclusion for over 25 million people.

The report, titled Two Decades of Impact: Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, has been released ahead of the 50th World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos and focusses on how social entrepreneurs can achieve impact at scale, change the systems in which they operate and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.

"The community has distributed more than USD 6.7 billion to projects and products that have enhanced livelihoods, including increasing healthcare access, providing clean energy solutions, and improving education outcomes," the report said.

"This report challenges the notion that models of social innovation can be dismissed as small, isolated islands of success amidst our overwhelming global challenges," said Hilde Schwab, Co-founder and Chairperson of the Foundation.

"Consider the combined capability of all social innovators in the world, those recognised in networks like the Schwab Foundation, and the hundreds of thousands that exist in local communities around the world," she said.

This community of social enterprises operate in more than 190 countries, with 25 per cent of them reaching at least 90 countries each.

All 10 countries in which social entrepreneurs are most active are low to middle income markets (with the exception of the US), and six of those are in Africa. They include Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and the US.

India is on the top with 46 such social entrepreneurs, followed by 40 in the US, 34 in Kenya, 29 in Brazil and 26 each in South Africa and Uganda.

"Social innovators have pioneered sustainable approaches and inclusive business models, and serve as a clear demonstration that models of stakeholder capitalism can indeed work," said Klaus Schwab, the WEF Founder and Executive Chairman.

The Schwab Foundation was established 20 years ago as a platform to support an under-recognized movement of people who were developing innovative business models delivering social or environmental good.

It provides exposure, capacity building and a trusting community of social-change leaders within the World Economic Forum. It now represents 384 late-stage social innovators operating in more than 190 countries worldwide.