Read the following new article and answer the questions that…
Read the following new article and answer the questions that follow.Cell Phones: Help for Small Businesses in the Developing World 1. Small businesses are vital for a country’s economy. They are especially important for developing countries, where they are a significant source of jobs and revenue. They help businesses which face many challenges, such as the following:Oudry is a farmer who sells bananas in different villages. He wants to sell them where the demand for bananas is highest so that he can get the best price. However, the roads are very bad, and it takes all day to travel to one village market. He cannot visit all of the local markets, so he must decide where to go before he knows what the price will be.Simon repairs bicycles. When he repairs a bicycle, sometimes people don’t have money to pay him. They don’t use banks or credit cards. Instead, they may say, “My grandfather will pay. He lives in another village.” Sometimes it takes a long time for Simon to get his money.Anjali is very poor. Her husband does not earn very much money. She wants to earn money to assist him. However, because she has four young children to take care of and she has very little education, it will be difficult for her to find employment. 2. Is there a solution to these problems? For all of them, the key has been the cell phone. The number of cell phones in the developing world has skyrocketed. There are approximately 6 billion cell phones in the world, and the majority – almost 5 billion – are in the developing world. In India, more people have access to a cell phone than to a modern toilet. Cell phones have become central to the success of businesses in these countries, especially small businesses. 3. All over the developing world, farmers have increased their incomes by using their cell phones to send and receive information. Farmers like Oudry can find out which village has the best price for bananas. 4. In many developing countries, it is difficult for consumers to pay someone who is far away. In Kenya, a company called M-Pesa allows people to pay with their cell phones. Instead of money, they pay with airtime. For example, if Simon repairs a boy’s bicycle, the boy’s grandfather can pay Simon with airtime even if he lives in a remote village. Simon can use the airtime, or he can pay someone else with it.5. In Bangladesh, many women have supplemented their families’ income by selling milk or vegetables. In 1997, women like Anjali started selling airtime from their cell phones instead. They borrowed money from a bank to buy the phone, and they paid it back when they earned enough money. These innovations in cell-phone use have helped small businesses grow and have increased prosperity in many developing countries.
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