Prof. Christian Seelos and Johanna Mair have been named Gold Prize winners by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Financial Times second annual essay writing competition for the paper "Corporate Strategy and Market Creation in Context of Deep Poverty."

The theme of this year's competition was "Private Sector Development: Creating Markets, Transforming Lives" and over 750 submissions from 90 countries were received. The winners were selected based on evaluation criteria that include quality of analysis and logic of argument, innovation and originality, relevance to international audiences, writing style and structure, and implications for private sector development.

Written by Seelos and co-authored by Mair, the selection of this essay for the award reflects a growing awareness of "Base of the Pyramid" strategies, which can generate successful business opportunities in income-poor communities.

The IFC is private sector arm of the World Bank Group, whose purpose is to promote sustainable private sector investment in developing countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people's lives. Through its numerous initiatives, it focuses on three core areas: creating the institutional foundations for effective markets, promoting open and competitive markets and supporting social safety nets with market-based instruments. 

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