Some businesses may be global in their reach but it is only locally that anything happens, that people are employed and that widgets are made and shipped. Then there is the fact that business is very accustomed to the idea of the development of human capital, not starting with sociological categorisation but with an assessment of what skills can be developed and aptitudes fostered, and always ready to improvise with what is available. The developmental model which comes most naturally to any businessman is the Parable of the Talents, and, given that capacity is the greatest single need of the developing world, it is highly relevant to what is most required. The time horizons of business are relatively long compared to democratic governments, seeking a renewal of their mandate every few years, or even to perennially insecure autocrats looking over their shoulders. Investment returns are measured in decades not months and years.
Long horizons make for better development and forward planning.
That is not a trap into which any locally-based business is likely to fall. Its potential employees, its neighbours, its suppliers and consumers are far more likely to be seen as the individuals they are. Business, for this reason, is a potentially valuable ally in the quest for human rights, alarmed by arbitrary power, valuing the role of law and seeing people as individuals rather than collectivities. Finally, in attempting to analyse some of the strengths which business can bring to the task of development, there is the sharp realism of self-interest. This corresponds to the thrust of all business and commerce.