UNDP Growing Inclusive Markets: Case Research Programme

Project Context

The first stage of the UNDP Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative proved that opportunities to create value for business and the poor via ‘inclusive business models’ do exist. It found that a variety of actors contribute the creation of value for people, planet and profit. The research also highlighted the importance of a factor that had so far been neglected: the environment.

The goal of the second stage of the Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative is to explore these findings further. More than 50 case studies written by researchers from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europa and the CIS will support this endeavor by providing empirical evidence on how inclusive business models are created, how other actors contribute to the business and what economic, social and environmental results are created.

The overall objective of this research effort is to understand, enable and inspire the development of more effective inclusive business models around the globe that will help to create new opportunities for better lives for many of the world’s poor.

Project Objective

Directors of the Emergia Institute will contribute to the objective of the second phase of the Growing Inclusive Markets Initative in two ways:

• Christina Gradl will act as an advisor of the initiative, constributing to the development of the research design and its implementation
• Aline Krämer will coordinate case writers from Eastern Europe and the CIS for the programme. The cases will provide the empirical basis for a regional report

Project Output

The project has two key outputs:

• A concept for the research design of GIM 2.0
• 14 Case Studies of inclusive business models from Eastern Europe and the CIS