Stronger Governments to Hinder Exploitation of BOP consumers!

"I do not advocate sprawling governments, high taxes, or tightly regulated private sectors...I do believe, however, that states must impose some limits on free markets to prevent the exploitation of the of the poor" -Aneel Karani, Romanticizing the Poor, Stanford Social Innovation Review Karani's piece intimates that in the field of policy and social innovation for BoP communities it comes as little surprise that governments are accused of lacking the ability to fall prey to corruption practices. Governments lacking the systematic infrastructure are vulnerable to the greed of big corporations that wish to take advantage of their resources. If the powerful actors in the international community are not vigilant BoP markets can begin to be seen as lucrative mineral rich regions subject to the whelms of power corporations that are seeking a returns for shareholders and not society. But how do you measure exploitation? How do you regulate social responsibility? Or should you? Karani raises the point that not all markets are perfect in achieving what Jeff Mulgan's call effective supply and demand in so much that needs are being met that address a societal problem. Historically we have seen markets fail those who lack perfect information and face barriers to entry...overwhelming this group tends to be impoverished populations with limited education all across the globe. In developed countries like the United States and Great Britain, governments have intervened where the market has failed to serve these populations,. The ideas that using the free market approach to address all ailments of the BoP industry is not realistic, and not surprisingly so. Innovative and comprehensive government intervention that incorporates Jeff Mulgan's approach to assessing social impact within their region, can help create more robust market for BoP communities. The questions is, where does intervention end and free market begin?