Building markets that last: Rethinking development partnership

1. How can development projects create sustainable impact rather than temporary fixes?

In Bangladesh, while emergency funding and direct delivery mechanisms play a critical role in addressing immediate needs, many interventions are not structured to ensure lasting impact. As a result, progress can slow once external funding concludes. To enhance sustainability, there is an opportunity to transition from a direct implementation approach to a facilitative one, embedding solutions within local markets, private sector systems, and community institutions for longer-term resilience.

For example, promoting a nutritious crop like orange-fleshed sweet potato can only succeed if farmers have a reliable market to sell to. Therefore, our first step is to validate the market concept by linking farmers with buyers and processors, to ensure production is profitable before scaling. Establishing proof of concept prior to wider promotion helps prevent unintended consequences. Similarly, we move beyond simply installing water pumps. Instead, we explore opportunities to develop networks of local entrepreneurs  and service providers who integrate these products into their business models. Our role is to catalyse and strengthen market relationships, then gradually step back, leaving behind a self-sustaining system in which each actor has both the capacity and the incentive to continue the activity.

2. What practical tools does iDE use to create system change in sectors like renewable energy, agricultural machinery, and WASH?

While consumers can readily access financing for high-value consumer goods, low-income farmers often lack affordable financing options for productive assets such as solar irrigation pumps. This gap highlights the need for market mechanisms that make essential technologies and services more accessible and sustainable. To address these challenges, iDE applies practical tools that de-risk innovation for the private sector and design commercially viable business models that can scale and sustain impact over time.

For instance, through piloting and partnership models, we have facilitated the emergence of a million-dollar agro-machinery market by engaging both government and private actors. Using the business model canvas, we map every component of a business, from value proposition to customer segments and revenue streams, to ensure commercial viability before expansion.

In WASH, we apply facilitation tools that go beyond building infrastructure. We work to align the incentives of local masons, material suppliers, water service providers, and local governments, ensuring that both water supply and sanitation services are sustained and that hygiene practices are adopted at scale. By strengthening these interlinked market and institutional systems, we enable a self-sustaining ecosystem where each actor has the capacity and motivation to continue providing WASH services long after project completion.

3. How do you specifically transform the journey of women entrepreneurs in rural areas?

Unlocking the nation's demographic dividend requires a broader entrepreneurial focus that extends beyond cities into rural areas. However, the ecosystem for supporting rural entrepreneurship is still evolving and requires more targeted investment. Existing support models often emphasise private sector partnerships and access to capital, but startup financing alone rarely ensures long-term business sustainability.

At iDE, we work with a diverse group of entrepreneurs, ranging from nutrition and WASH to bamboo-sector innovators and garment workers transitioning into self-employment. Our approach applies a skills graduation model, a structured pathway that enables individuals to progress from subsistence to sustainable enterprise. This begins with a human-centred design and business model canvas analysis to identify viable opportunities. Participants then receive tailored business capacity-building support through four modules: business analysis, technical knowledge, sales and marketing, and business linkages.

Gender inclusion is integrated at every stage, from project design through implementation, using a gender-lens analysis to address barriers women face in accessing finance, information, and markets. Rather than creating isolated women's groups, we connect women entrepreneurs to the broader market ecosystem as confident, capable, and competitive business leaders.

4. What role can local governments and private investors play after donor exit?

They serve as the twin pillars of long-term sustainability. Local governments create the enabling environment by supporting local enterprises, allocating market spaces, and embedding successful models into broader development initiatives. Private investors, in turn, drive scale, transforming successful donor-funded pilots into commercially viable and financially independent enterprises.

iDE, a global nonprofit organisation in 12 countries since 1984, drives poverty reduction through market-driven solutions in Bangladesh, scaling agriculture, WASH, climate resilience, clean energy, and women's empowerment.

This content has been published under 'Catalyzing Markets' - a media campaign jointly initiated by iDE Bangladesh and The Daily Star. This interview was conducted by Shams Rashid Tonmoy.