1. Conference on Poverty and Opportunity: Creating Avenues for Advancement
Session 2: Template for creating Opportunities for getting out of poverty: Public sector and private sector perspective
Hosted by: The Sociology Unit of the Department of Behavioural Sciences, the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus
April 15, 2015
PRIVATE SECTOR OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONTRIBUTING TO
NATIONAL EFFORTS AT REDUCING POVERTY
Prepared and Presented by:
David D. Ramjohn
Chief Executive Officer
Synergy Resources Limited

2. Presentation Outline
 The Impact of Poverty
 Current Interventions
 Limitations
 Private Sector Opportunities: Why should Business
be concerned?
 Conclusion
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3. The Impact of Poverty
Goal 1 of the eight globally adopted United Nations Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) is to “eradicate extreme poverty and hunger”.
Poverty impacts society in many different ways, including but not limited to:
 Crime
 Reduced ability to benefit from education or other State resources
 Social tension
 Increased substance abuse
 Increased demand for state welfare programmes
 Loss of potential of individuals to contribute to national productivity
In a world where some lucky few can afford to throw away food and clothing, we
as a society should be more concerned about our moral obligations to help those in
need rather than debate whether or not we should help.

4. The Impact of Poverty
Source: Polak, Paul, & Warwick, Mal. (2013). Business Solution to Poverty: Designing Products and Services for Three
Billion New Customers. (1st ed., 264p). Berrett-Koehler.
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Most significant yet unquantifiable loss to society:
HUMAN POTENTIAL

5. Current Interventions
Source: National Report: Trinidad and Tobago. A civil society review of progress towards the Millennium Development
Goals in Commonwealth countries. (2013). Commonwealth Foundation. p. 7.
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Different perspectives on progress towards MDG 1

6. Current Interventions
“The money value of available income support [from the State] for low-
income households vastly exceeds the poverty line.”
Support
Instruments
H/Hold 1 H/Hold 2 H/Hold 3 H/Hold 4 H/Hold 5
$0 $0< 500 <$ 1,500 < $1,000 < $1,000
Total monthly
benefits ($TT)
5,254.3 6,354.3 3,623.3 5,298.6 5,575.3
ANNUAL TOTAL
SUPPORT ($TT)
63,051.6 76,251.6 43,479.6 63,583.2 66,903.6
2008 POVERTY LINE = TT$815 per adult per month
Source: Theodore, Karl and Ewan Scott (2008). Income poverty and state support in Trinidad and Tobago: the case for
alignment. Department of Economics-Conference on the Economy (COTE). Presentation at University of the West Indies, St.
Augustine.
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State Support for Low-Income Households
N.B: Estimates of population living below the poverty line vary but most agree that the figure is
approximately 20%. (Kedir and Sookram, 2013, estimate 22%)

7. Limitations
 Data: How reliable are the data that inform policies? Are we measuring poverty in
the most accurate and meaningful way?
 Access to or Delivery of Services: Education, Health, Energy, Transportation,
Sanitation, Potable Water
 State Support: Equitable? Means-tested? Appropriately Distributed? Achieving
desired outcomes? Properly monitored and evaluated?
 Cross-functional Solutions: not just about handouts, but about improving access to
and delivery of services. Creating a mechanism to wean participants off the State
resources towards self-dependence.
 Gender Perspectives: Women as key element in eradicating poverty (Grameen Bank:
>90% of borrowers are women)
 Crime: Cause or Effect? Does poverty induce crime or vice versa?
 Legislative and policy framework: Top-down or Bottom-up Approach?
 The Poor: Burden or Resource?
 Efficacy of State Interventions: e.g. education, are we training for the workforce we
need? Do we have “underemployment” when individuals qualify yet are unable to
find jobs in their area of training?
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8. Private Sector Opportunities
Why eradicating poverty is good for business…
Source: Polak, Paul, & Warwick, Mal. (2013). Business Solution to Poverty: Designing Products and Services for Three
Billion New Customers. (1st ed., 264p). Berrett-Koehler.
©2015 Synergy Resources Limited

9. Private Sector Opportunities
Source: UN Millennium Project. 2005. Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the
Millennium Development Goals. New York
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Where is the money going to come from?
Financial Innovation.

10. Private Sector Opportunities
The UN Global Compact asks companies to embrace, support and enact, within their sphere of influence, a set
of core values in the areas of human rights, labour standards, the environment and anti-corruption through the
adoption and practice of TEN PRINCIPLES:
Human Rights
Principle 1: Businesses should support and respect the protection of internationally proclaimed human
rights; and
Principle 2: make sure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses.
Labour
Principle 3: Businesses should uphold the freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right
to collective bargaining;
Principle 4: the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour;
Principle 5: the effective abolition of child labour; and
Principle 6: the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.
Environment
Principle 7: Businesses should support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;
Principle 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility; and
Principle 9: encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.
Anti-Corruption
Principle 10: Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including extortion and bribery.
Source: https://www.unglobalcompact.org/AboutTheGC/TheTenPrinciples/index.html <Accessed: 12April2015>
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Participate in the UN Global Compact

11. Private Sector Opportunities
Expand the Economic Pie
 through diversification of the economy
 increasing productivity and creating jobs
“In a market-based economy, private firms contribute to poverty reduction through many
channels. They reduce income poverty when productivity rises, job opportunities increase, and
competition for workers drives up wages. By producing essential goods and services in large-
scale production, they can also help to keep the price of essential goods and services down,
increasing the real effective incomes of poor people...As firms grow, they provide a larger
source of tax revenues to the government, which in turn supports increased public
investments” (UN Millennium Project, 2005)
• Create employment opportunities in non-traditional economic activities utilizing non-
academic skills, e.g. in areas such as agriculture, aquaculture, performing arts, sporting
disciplines.
• Increase the human capital by hiring and training appropriately out of state-funded
programmes, e.g. CEPEP, URP
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12. Private Sector Opportunities
Service delivery through public-private partnerships
“A public-private partnership can combine the respective strengths of the private and public
sectors. The private sector can leverage its advantages of greater efficiency, lower costs of
distribution, and more complex delivery systems to reach new markets. The public sector can
ensure universal access by providing financial support to subsidize impoverished households,
thereby enabling private firms to enter large markets with guaranteed consumers” (UN
Millennium Project, 2005)
• Develop new ideas and opportunities for PPPs recognizing that success
of PPPs will depend on: accountability; transparency; fairness;
appropriate regulatory and policy framework; monitoring and
evaluation.
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13. Responsible corporate governance and citizenship
Private Sector Opportunities
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• Adopt the UN Global Compact;
• Adhere to international best practices for corporate governance and
citizenship;
• Provide accurate and timely data when required, e.g. TTEITI Initiative
“Another major element of sound corporate citizenship is to fight corruption. Corporations
should refuse to pay bribes, especially in low-income countries where governments often
struggle to strengthen the rule of law. Firms in extractive industries that operate in natural
resource–rich developing countries have a special responsibility in this. The international oil
companies have a particular responsibility to be transparent in their transactions with the
government and local authorities, so that citizens can keep track of where the revenues are
flowing” (UN Millennium Project, 2005)

14. Contributing to policy design
Private Sector Opportunities
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“The local private sector represents a key constituency whose responsible voice should be
represented alongside others in major policymaking processes. National chambers of commerce
can often lead in representing the voices of private firms. Often, they are supported by the
valuable work of international business organizations, such as the International Chambers of
Commerce…of course, the private sector has to be balanced with civil society and other
communities. Since the private sector is capable of wielding tremendous influence in decision-
making through its financial strength, national governments have an added responsibility of
ensuring transparency and balancing interests in all public discussions relating to private
sector development processes” (UN Millennium Project, 2005)
• Get involved in policy development and design as it relates to private
sector development and poverty eradication.

15. Advocacy for the Millennium Development Goals
Private Sector Opportunities
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“Since members of the private sector often have access to important channels of public debate,
they can advocate the public investments needed to spur private economic activity, particularly
in low-income countries. Domestically, private companies can have a big influence if they lobby
publicly for improved infrastructure, better health services for their workers, and better
education for the work force” (UN Millennium Project, 2005)
• Lobby for the promotion of programmes geared to achieve the MDGs
• Identify ways that business can create opportunities in alignment with
achieving the MDGs, e.g. human capital programmes, direct
investment where necessary.

16. Corporate philanthropy
Private Sector Opportunities
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“Philanthropy can also be in-kind—for example, through community partnerships and education
and training. Private firms can invest heavily in the development needs of their local host
communities through such partnerships, signaling a long-term commitment to the welfare of
the host community…Corporations can also donate employee and management time to help
public sector enterprises and governments design and implement projects. And they can
contribute to developing local capacity by undertaking extensive training programs and
contributing to the development of the local private sector” (UN Millennium Project, 2005).
• Targeted interventions of both direct (cash) and in-kind philanthropic
outreach programmes to benefit the poor and underprivileged.
• Include a scorecard for the MDGs in Corporate Social Responsibility
reporting.

17. AmCham Interventions:
 Educate AmCham members and the wider population to allow:
 increased human capital through education and training
 integration into the productive workforce
 understanding of the impact of poverty on society
 meaningful dialogue on needs of affected population and mechanisms to eradicate
poverty
 understanding of existing support mechanisms and how to access same
 evaluation of the efficacy, predictability and equity of state resources and programmes
 Contribute to the national conversations on legislative and policy framework development to
address issues relevant to poverty eradication.
 Coordinate interventions of membership via annual programmes and events, e.g. National
Youth Productivity Forum, HSSE Conference and Exhibition.
 Act as a measured, responsible and practical voice for public opinion on matters of public
concern.
 Encourage the delivery of programmes that offer a “hand up” not a “hand out”.
Private Sector Opportunities
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Source: Nirad Tewarie, pers. comm. April 13, 2015

18. Poverty is everyone’s business.
There is no single magic bullet that will eradicate poverty. We need a,
focused, coordinated, comprehensive, judicious system of context-based
and outcome-driven policies and programmes that capitalize on the
strengths of the private and public sectors as well as academia, civil society
and the fourth and fifth estates to achieve clearly defined goals and
objectives with meaningful targets.
Conclusion
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If we fail, the poor alone will not suffer.

19. Bibliography:
Danziger, S., and Haveman, R. (Eds.). (2001). Understanding poverty (566p). New York, New York:
Russell Sage Foundation.
Kedir, A., and Sookram, S. (2013). Poverty and Welfare of the Poor in a High-Income Country: Evidence
from Trinidad and Tobago. Journal of International Development, 25(4), 520-535.
National Report: Trinidad and Tobago. A civil society review of progress towards the Millennium
Development Goals in Commonwealth countries. (22p). (2013). Commonwealth Foundation.
Polak, Paul, & Warwick, Mal. (2013). Business Solution to Poverty: Designing Products and Services for
Three Billion New Customers. (1st ed., 264p). Berrett-Koehler.
Sachs, Jeffrey D. (2005). The end of poverty: Economic possibilities for our time (397p). New York:
Penguin Press.
Theodore, Karl and Ewan Scott (2008). Income poverty and state support in Trinidad and Tobago: the
case for alignment. Department of Economics-Conference on the Economy (COTE) (15p).
Presentation at University of the West Indies, St. Augustine.
UN Millennium Project. 2005. Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium
Development Goals (329p). New York
The millennium development goals: a Latin American and Caribbean perspective. (321p). (2005).
Santiago, Chile: United Nations.
Yunus, Muhammad, and Alan Jolis. (2003). Banker to the poor: micro-lending and the battle against
world poverty (200p). New York, NY: PublicAffairs.
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