From social assistance to social activism: a new look at solving the problems of the poorest segments of the population

Abstract

One of the global problems of mankind for many years is the problem of poverty. Despite the efforts of the world community to combat poverty and underdevelopment on our planet, progress has not been encouraging: the rich continue to become richer and the poor become even poorer. Segmentation of the population of our planet by income drop, conducted by experts from various organizations (UN, IFC, World Bank and others), leads to the conclusion that the poorest segments of the population (“bottom of the economic pyramid”) form more than half of the consumer market in developing countries. With the growth rates in these countries, and this trend exists, the purchasing power of these people should also increase. The low economic activity of people with low incomes is explained by different reasons, but the segment itself is not fully studied either in a single country or in the world as a whole. The reorientation of the activities of large TNCs and business enterprises on implementation of projects in the segment of “the bottom of the economic pyramid” will allow you to get out of poverty for millions of people around the world. Social and ethical marketing and business, taking into account this concept, will significantly reduce the number of people with low income, bringing to a new level of consumption.

Keywords

• bottom of the economic pyramid
• poverty
• segmentation
• purchasing power parity
• income level
• methods of combating poverty
• charity
• innovation
• socially responsible business
• social entrepreneurship