South Asia Case Studies

Mar 5, 2021

Building Inclusive Supply Chains

IFC’s latest publication “Building Inclusive Supply Chains” shows how MUJI has built an inclusive supply chain positively impacting on small producers at the base of the pyramid (BOP) who are mostly women, and how its stakeholders perceive its benefits. The report reflects direct feedback gathered during interviews and surveys conducted by IFC with different stakeholders in MUJI's supply chain -- including producers, customers, employees, and management. The report highlights key challenges and opportunities that stem from engagement with the BOP producers in emerging markets. It also provides insights into good practice in incorporating the BOP producers into global value chains, drawing on MUJI’s experiences.

Sep 16, 2016

bKash

bKash is a mobile financial services company founded in 2010 in Bangladesh. The company brings the unbanked into the formal financial system. It has played a major role in building Bangladesh’s mobile financial services industry from scratch and is the country’s leading player, accounting for 75 percent of the market. It enables 23million people who once dealt only in cash to send remittances, save, and pay for products and services using their mobile phones. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.

Sep 16, 2016

MicroEnsure

MicroEnsure has developed pioneering insurance solutions for low-income people in Africa and Asia living on less than $4 per day. Founded in 2008, the company has introduced over 200 types of insurance for life, health, and accidents for the poor, and distributes its products through mobile network operators, microfinance institutions, and other organizations that low-income customers trust. The company reaches more than 40 million customers in 15 countries in Africa and Asia. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.

Sep 16, 2016

Probiotech

Probiotech is a leading processor and producer of animal health and nutrition products in Nepal. The agribusiness was founded in 2000 and produces animal feed for small-scale farmers in Nepal, among other lines of work. The company improves the productivity of its 12,000 feed customers by offering training on farm management and by leveraging its extensive distribution network to provide high quality inputs. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.

Sep 16, 2016

NephroPlus

NephroCare Health Services Private Limited (NephroPlus) is a provider network of kidney dialysis services across 15 states in India. Founded in 2010, NephroPlus delivers these services in large metropolitan areas as well as underserved, small cities at prices that are 30 to 40 percent lower than hospitals. As of 2015, the company has 75 centers across India that service more than 6,000 patients and provide approximately 50,000 dialysis treatments each month. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.

Sep 16, 2016

Bridge International Academies

Bridge International Academies is an education organization founded in 2008 in Kenya, and grown to serve almost 100,000 students in over 470 locations in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and India. The company offers affordable, low-cost education to primary school children in underserved, low-income communities. The schools employ low-cost technology to provide teaching content to its teachers and to monitor the delivery of the content and teaching techniques on a real time basis. The company reaches more than 40 million customers in 15 countries in Africa and Asia. This case study is in the 2016 Built for Change report which features companies that are employing unique strategies to integrate people living at the base of the pyramid into the companies’ business operations.

May 1, 2014

Engro Foods

Engro Foods Ltd. (EFL) builds strong relationships with small dairy farmers to ensure there is a high quality and consistent supply of milk for its dairy products. Approximately 200,000 farmers supply milk to EFL, primarily through its network of 1,400 Milk Collection Centers (MCCs) and 1,500 Village Milk Collectors (VMCs). In 2012, EFL received the G20 Challenge on Inclusive Business Innovation Award. In 2013, the Computerworld Honors Program, which recognizes visionary applications of information technology to promote positive social, economic and educational change, recognized EFL as a laureate for its EMAN system.

May 1, 2014

Roshan

Roshan (Telecom Development Company Afghanistan Corp) is a leading telecommunications provider with over six million mobile telephony subscribers. Its network is available in 240 cities and towns throughout Afghanistan’s 34 provinces. The company engages low-income people through its core business in two key ways. On the customer side, Roshan offers mobile telephony as well as value-added services such as mobile payments, remittances, and agri-commodity prices among other offerings. On the distribution side, Roshan’s 33,000 agents – typically micro and small business entrepreneurs – sign-up mobile subscribers, sell airtime, and offer value-added services.

May 1, 2014

Jain Irrigation

Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd. (JISL) is the largest manufacturer of efficient irrigation systems worldwide and a leading processor of fruits and vegetables. Jain’s micro-irrigation systems (MIS) are more water and energy efficient than flood irrigation and increases quality and quantity of produce that farmers are able to grow. The company ensures its systems are affordable through relationships with banks, who provide credit and channel government subsidies. Through its model, farmers using MIS have increased yields by 60%-130% and raised their gross incomes by $500-$6,000 per year.

Aug 1, 2013

Butwal Power Company

Butwal Power Company Ltd. (BPC) is a leading hydropower company in Nepal involved in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. In Nepal, many rural populations do not have access to electricity because the remote mountainous terrain makes national grid connectivity difficult and expensive. Therefore, in addition to supplying power to the national grid, BPC supplies electricity to 38,000 people in mid-western Nepal, either through direct connections or through one of its 112 rural distribution network partners. By utilizing a tiered tariff structure, BPC is able to make electricity more affordable for low-income customers.

Aug 1, 2012

Apollo Hospitals

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd., one of the largest private integrated healthcare groups in India, has broadened the reach of health services providers in India by establishing facilities in semi-urban and rural areas and using telemedicine for specialist referrals. To ensure healthcare is affordable to all, Apollo Reach hospitals treat both low- and high-income patients and charge fees based on their ability to pay. By 2015, the hospital group is expected to serve 400,000 patients per year, 30% of which earn less than $2 a day.

Aug 1, 2012

Suvidhaa

Suvidhaa Infoserve Pvt Ltd. (Suvidhaa), an e-commerce service in India, offers individuals the means to make electronic payments for a variety of virtual products and services. Suvidhaa offers online and mobile payments for 300 businesses, through 55,000 franchised distribution networks (Suvidhaa Points), in more than 1,800 cities or towns, with a total of more than 10 million individual customers.

Aug 1, 2012

Dialog Telekom PLC

Dialog Telekom PLC is Sri Lanka’s leading mobile telecommunications service provider with approximately 6.3 million subscribers and a market share of around 49% in 2009. In 1993, Dialog was awarded a 20-year license to provide cellular telecommunications services by the government of Sri Lanka. Dialog’s inclusive business model is not only expanding access to telecommunications but also expanding economic opportunity for the micro- and small-scale retailers that sell its products.

Aug 1, 2012

Aadhar Housing Finance

Aadhar Housing Finance Ltd. (AHFL) seeks to extend opportunities for home ownership to low- and lower middle-income households in India. Established in 2011 as a registered Housing Finance Company, AHFL is regulated by India’s National Housing Bank. In its first year of operation, AHFL disbursed 861 loans worth $8.8 million, with approximately 50% of new loans going to customers earning $100-$400 per month.

Aug 1, 2012

FINO PayTech

FINO PayTech Ltd. builds and implements technologies that enable financial institutions to serve under-banked populations through mobile point-of-transaction terminals and smart cards. FINO PayTech deploys field agents to enroll consumers in rural and semi-urban regions of India and conduct low-cost transactions. To date, FINO has enrolled over 20 million individuals in 21 states in India and provides them with access to a suite of financial services including remittances, deposits, credit, subsidies and insurance.

Aug 1, 2012

ECOM

Ecom Agroindustrial Corporation Ltd. (ECOM), one of the world‘s leading commodity traders, works with coffee growers – the majority of whom are smallholders at the base of the pyramid. ECOM’s direct financing, coupled with partnerships with technical assistance providers, has enabled these farmers to improve productivity, increase quality and gain the certification necessary for premium pricing. Between 2006 and 2012, ECOM purchased more than 81,000 metric tons of certified coffee, providing an additional $14.7 million in income for farmers.

Aug 1, 2012

Idea Cellular Limited (Idea)

Idea is the fastest growing telecom service provider in India. The company’s origins extend back to 1995, and it started its commercial operations in 1997 in Maharashtra and Gujarat states. Idea expanded into other service areas through a combination of organic growth and acquisitions.