Ann Cairns

President International Markets, MasterCard Worldwide

It's a chapter that begins with Nigeria's announcement that it will be rolling out 13 million National Identity Cards -- the broadest financial inclusion initiative of its kind on the African continent.

Edsel Tupaz and Daniel Wagner

Professor of international and comparative law

Over the past decade the Philippines' sovereign credit rating oscillated between "negative" and "stable," reflecting concern about the ability of the government to collect sufficient tax revenue, manage its budget, and sustain a high rate of GDP growth.

Ariel Bleth

Freelance writer

More than being aware, mindfulness is often thought of as a state of being fully in the present moment, free from habitual reactions, conclusions and judgments. This can come in handy when we are in situations that we can't change.

Ariel Bleth

Freelance writer

I think it is time to admit it: I'm nearly a professional volunteer. I haven't always been. For a long time I managed my impulse toward service in a way that allowed me to keep my normal life pragmatically rolling along steady, even occasionally service-oriented.

Ola Ojewumi

Founder, Sacred Hearts Children’s Transplant Foundation and Project ASCEND

What does it mean to be black in America? I faced this question early in life as a child of African immigrants. First days of school were the worst days. As teachers and peers faced difficulty pronouncing my long West African name, I struggled to understand who I was.

Rev. Kapya Kaoma and Jandira Queiroz

Project Director at Political Research Associates

Did you know that the Christian-right legal organization responsible for drafting the Defense of Marriage Act, which bans federal recognition of same-sex marriage in the U.S., also supports the criminalization of homosexuality in Kenya and Zimbabwe and has now set its sight on Brazil?

Shira Lazar

Co-founder, WhatsTrending.com

Public Enemy hip hop sensation Chuck D stops by the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus at SXSW 2013 to talk about being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his Evil vs Heroes instrumental album, and the new digital label for independent artists, SpitDigital.

Richard Attias

Founder, The New York Forum

Women remain the untapped economic superpower. As Africa becomes more and more prosperous, we must ask what role African women will play in this growth.

Bobby Elliott

Poet and writer living in New York City

The real excitement surrounding El Anatsui's tapestries -- surrounding all of his work -- has to do with the belief that they are much more than offshoots or pretty objects.

Nick Street

Senior Writer, Center for Religion and Civic Culture, University of Southern California

On a brilliantly sunny Monday morning, a couple of dozen young men gathered for a game of soccer in Jos, central Nigeria. At first glance the event seemed unremarkable. But the armed guard who kept vigil by the gate at the Hillcrest School was the first indication that more serious matters were at stake.

XPRIZE

Making the Impossible Possible

If you are reading this and you live in the U.S. or another developed economy, what comes to your mind is Angie's List or other similar platforms. Well, this will not work for the security guard. Though it may work for Godwin if there is a similar platform launched in Nigeria.

Ben Barber

Journalist, photographer, consultant

One has only to visit Nigeria or India or Pakistan for a few hours to catch a glimpse of beggars who creep along the dirt roads of villages or the filthy asphalt streets of the cities, crawling on their elbows and dragging legs paralyzed due to polio.

Ian Bremmer

Author, 'Every Nation for Itself'

Today I'm going to zap around the world a bit, outlining some global trends that are areas of opportunity, both for promoting the World Economic Forum's commitment to "improving the state of the world" and for businesses' bottom lines.

Freedom House

Independent watchdog organization dedicated to the expansion of freedom around the world

by Arch Puddington and Jennifer Dunham *Arch Puddington is vice president for research at Freedom House, and Jennifer Dunham is the research a...

Raymond Baker

Director, Global Financial Integrity and Task Force on Financial Integrity & Economic Development

The West should do three things right away. First, we should eliminate anonymous shell corporations, so no criminal can hide nefarious actions behind an innocent-sounding Delaware LLC or Cayman Islands trust.

Daniel Wagner and Giorgio Cafiero

CEO, Country Risk Solutions

If we consider what has happened in countries such as Mali and Sudan, and what is now happening in the CAR, it appears that radical political change in the failed or failing states of SSA is the new normal.