10/21 International News Tidbits

Only 22 Countries Are Paid-In-Full Members Of U.N.

Just 22 countries out of 192 -- 11.4% -- are paid-in-full members of the United Nations. Those nations have paid all of what they owed for the world body's 2008/09 core budget, peacekeeping, international tribunals and renovations to U.N. headquarters in New York, said Angela Kane, U.N. under secretary-general for management. The rest including the United States -- the top contributor to the United Nations -- have yet to pay all their dues. Ms. Kane said U.N. members still owed a total of $3.1 billion for 2008/09 -- $2.1 billion for peacekeeping, $828 million for the core budget, $63 million for the international tribunals and $86 million for renovations to U.N. headquarters. There are 123 countries that have cleared their bills for the U.N. core budget and 119 that have paid for the U.N. renovations. Only 84 have paid for U.N. international tribunals. The United States - which pays for roughly a quarter of the U.N.'s budget - has said it was ready to pay the more than $2 billion in new and old contributions it owes the United Nations for peacekeeping operations.

Indian Firms Shift Focus To The Poor

Indian companies, long dependent on hand-me-down technology from developed nations, are becoming cutting-edge innovators as they target one of the world's last untapped markets: the poor. Many products aren't just cheaper versions of well-established models available in the West but have taken design and manufacturing assumptions honed in the developed world and turned them on their heads (hat tip: Cultural Strategist). For the farmer who wants to save for the future, one Indian entrepreneur has developed what is, in effect, a $200 portable bank branch. For the village housewife, a wood-burning stove has been reinvented to make more heat and less smoke for $23. For the slum family struggling to get clean water, there is a $43 water-purification system. For the villager who wants to give his child a cold glass of milk, there is a tiny $70 refrigerator that can run on batteries. And for rural health clinics, whose patients can't spend more than $5 on a visit, there are heart monitors and baby warmers redesigned to cost 10% of what they do elsewhere. Instead of using traditional supply chains, many companies are distributing through rural self-help groups and microlenders that are already plugged into villages. And while profit margins are slim, companies are counting on volume to compensate. Many hope to eventually sell to other poor and underserved markets in Asia and Africa.