ABSTRACT
Government actions, philanthropy and aid have been, for a long time, the main strategies for poverty alleviation. Unmet needs for food, healthcare, water and other basic products have been traditionally addressed by direct public investment, subsidies or charity. There is, however, a growing concern about whether these measures, based on an assumption that the poor are unable to help themselves, and therefore need assistance (Hammond et al. 2007), are efficient and sufficient ways of reducing poverty. At the same time, numerous scholars have started examining the market-based approach to poverty alleviation. The basic innovation brought by this approach has been the recognition of the poor as members of the markets (Hammond et al. 2007).
