Companies are investing heavily in many developing nations of the world, but so much of their investment barely touches the majority of the population. In India 69% of the population continue to live on less than two dollars a day and in China the proportion is 30% of the population. Half of the world’s population do not have access to clean running water and 660 million people lack sanitation. 22,000 children die every day from starvation and 72 million children lack even primary education.
Yet the corporate world continues its daily business regardless of this misery. Charitable giving does take place, but it barely touches the surface of the problem. In a recent visit to Changsha in central China I witnessed the intense deprivation suffered particularly by the old and disabled. Public welfare officially exists, but in practice funding is siphoned off by corrupt public officials and an estimated 20% of the city’s population live in abject poverty. Underneath the high rise office blocks people with no limbs and with terminal conditions crawl on plastic sacks begging for one rmb notes (around 0.12 euros). Yet China has the highest number of billionaires in the world and flash supercars are a common sight on the city streets. Countless executives must look down on this suffering every day from the comfort of their office suites and lift their coffee cups as they talk on about deals, incentives and margins.