Scale Up Lab, India 2020 | SEED Practitioner Labs Climate Finance
Published: 23 October 2020
Join us on 25th November for our digital Scale-Up Lab India 2020 to hear climate finance solution pitches, and learn how to get involved in driving forward these solutions! Read more
SDGs:
UNDP Indonesia's Innovative Finance for Renewable Energy in Small Coastal Island Communities | Climate Finance, Indonesia 2020
Published: 20 October 2020 Net Pornlumon Nirachatsuwan
UNDP Indonesia's Innovative Finance for Renewable Energy in Small Coastal Island Communities builds on existing efforts to allocate funds to leverage public funding and private sector investment in clean energy which creates financially viable interconnected renewable grids, specifically developing a hybrid PV-diesel power generation system in small islands. Furthermore, creating energy demand by building a local green economy. Read more
SDGs:
Equity Crowdfunding Platform for Green MSME Financing | Climate Finance, Indonesia 2020
Published: 20 October 2020 Maggie Sloan
The Equity Crowdfunding Platform for Green MSME Financing solution, developed by Perkumpulan Untuk Peningkatan Usaha Kecil (PUPUK) builds on existing efforts to use public capital to spur MSME growth. This solution will: (a) Attract private investors by offering a pipeline of bankable MSMEs in a one-stop-shop for MSME financing. (b) Aggregate green MSMEs through partner business development service providers (or intermediaries), where finance is released to MSMEs in aggregate working with the specific BDS provider who has delivered cleaner production and green business advisory to the specific MSMEs integrated into the platform. Read more
SDGs:
AirEco: A Digital Marketplace for Natural Capital Providers, Business and Consumers | Climate Finance, Indonesia 2020
Published: 20 October 2020 Maggie Sloan
Lestari Capital's e-commerce solution offers a blockchain-backed application to aggregate and increase consumer access to ecosystem services markets. Consumers will have the opportunity to offset their carbon impacts through the purchase of divisible chunks of carbon credits, catered specifically to their purchasing behaviour. This solution offers great potential not only to directly engage businesses and their consumers in building low carbon markets, but also offers great potential to generate future opportunities for SMEs and community-based organisations engaged in ecosystem services markets to easily tap into these existing markets and find buyers for their certified credits. Read more
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Waste4Change: Stimulating Markets for Waste Credit via Enterprise Resource Planning Platform | Climate Finance, Indonesia 2020
Published: 20 October 2020 Net Pornlumon Nirachatsuwan
This innovative finance mechanism distributes waste credit to waste collectors and recycling managers by creating an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform that finances the waste collection and recycling activities which offsets the consumers waste production. Read more
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SEED Participates in GGKP Webinar - Rebuilding Better: New materials and systems for resource efficient SMEs
Published: 08 October 2020
On 29 September 2020, SEED’s Executive Director Lewis Akenji joined a panel of experts to talk innovations in sustainable materials across sectors. In this webinar, hosted by GGKP, a platform for green practitioners, multiple SEED supported enterprises were showcased. Read more
Building a Resilient Business Around Women: The story of Dagoretti
Published: 28 September 2020 Amanda Panella, Linde Wolters
Violet Matiru grew up without electricity on a farm at the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya, an aspect of her life that led her to want to better the environment around her. From using kerosene lamps and lighting a fire every day with firewood for a cup of tea before school, she decided to support herself and her community by launching the Dagoretti Market Biogas Latrine. It has since moved from a core business of converting human waste from paid for latrines for market goers, to biogas to be reused for cooking and heating water, to other environmentally and socially relevant activities. Read more
SDGs:
Enterprise Resilience: Six Critical Factors to Protecting Your Start-Up’s Future
Published: 24 September 2020
To better understand what resilience means for MSMEs during the COVID-19 pandemic, SEED interviewed 30 eco-inclusive enterprises. Unsurprisingly, MSMEs have been strongly affected by the economic shock of the pandemic. From these interviews, SEED has outlined the six critical factors for protecting the future of your enterprise. Read more
Green Recovery Ecosystem Builder Programme: Making SME support programmes green, fair and recovery proof
Published: 10 September 2020
SMEs make up a significant portion of ASEAN economies and communities. Despite being impacted negatively by the pandemic, they are also key in driving local green and inclusive growth. The new Green Recovery Ecosystem Builder Programme is tailored for participants who lead programmes or departments and are responsible for the successful implementation of enterprise support services. Read more
How Murendeni Mafumo started Kusini Water, a Water Business with Social Impact, in South Africa
Thomas Jakel Source: AfricaX
Mapping Enterprise Resilience to COVID-19
Published: 07 September 2020 Elena Eckhardt, Linde Wolters, Mirko Zürker, Supapim Wannopas
Resilience is an indispensable tool to help MSMEs prepare for the unknown, especially now when COVID-19 induced curfews and lockdowns expose MSMEs to new vulnerabilities. With fewer resources and access to information than larger companies, MSMEs in emerging markets have experienced severe disruptions to their businesses, with around 42% worldwide facing potential failure within six months.
This report demonstrates how MSMEs, particularly eco-inclusive enterprises, are weathering the COVID-19 pandemic and how governments and intermediaries can lend support. In this report we outline six essential resilience factors and good practices that SEED’s eco-inclusive enterprises have employed in emerging markets. Our SEED enterprises serve as an excellent example of how other enterprises can incorporate resilience into their business models in the face of the pandemic and to become more adaptable for future shocks. Read more
This report demonstrates how MSMEs, particularly eco-inclusive enterprises, are weathering the COVID-19 pandemic and how governments and intermediaries can lend support. In this report we outline six essential resilience factors and good practices that SEED’s eco-inclusive enterprises have employed in emerging markets. Our SEED enterprises serve as an excellent example of how other enterprises can incorporate resilience into their business models in the face of the pandemic and to become more adaptable for future shocks. Read more
Eco-Inclusive Enterprises: Accelerating Southern Africa’s Green and Inclusive Economies
Published: 02 September 2020
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) provide 50% of jobs, contribute to over 35% of the GDP in emerging economies, and overall make up 90% of registered firms across the world. They are especially impactful in emerging economies as they work toward inclusive growth and equality for marginalised populations. At SEED, we focus on growing eco-inclusive enterprises which in turn contribute socially, economically, and environmentally to empowering the 5.2 billion people at the bottom of the pyramid worldwide.
This report examines the yearly impact of 80 of our eco-inclusive enterprises in three of our SEED countries: Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi. These locally embedded enterprises, 51% of which are women-led, demonstrate that driving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can indeed be profitable and with a success rate of 82.5% still in business, they show long-lasting impact in each of their communities and sectors. Read more
This report examines the yearly impact of 80 of our eco-inclusive enterprises in three of our SEED countries: Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Malawi. These locally embedded enterprises, 51% of which are women-led, demonstrate that driving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can indeed be profitable and with a success rate of 82.5% still in business, they show long-lasting impact in each of their communities and sectors. Read more
SDGs:
MSMEs: Drivers of Green and Inclusive Economies in Thailand | Policy Landscape Paper, Thailand
Published: 01 September 2020 Linde Wolters, Panramon Mahasuwan, Sonya Ong, Supapim Wannopas
As a leader in the ASEAN region, Thailand’s policy frameworks are well aligned with ASEAN initiatives, UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement. Various stakeholders including those in the MSME ecosystem are working towards achieving the Thailand 4.0 industrial policy, a long-term vision to transition the country into an innovation-based economy, with a focus on technology, creativity and services. This policy landscape paper provides a brief overview of the social and environmental impact entrepreneurial ecosystem in Thailand. It serves as the background for the Practitioner Labs for Policy Prototyping hosted by SEED with UNDP Thailand as strategic partner. Read more
SDGs:
Leveraging the contributions of MSMEs to green growth and the circular economy in Ghana | Policy Landscape Paper
Published: 01 September 2020 Camilla Shearman, Doris Awortwi-Tandoh, Julia Haack, Kodjo Barnor, Letitia Varney, Linde Wolters, Thomas Wiredu
The policy context as it relates to MSMEs in Ghana is in a state of transformation. With a new MSME Policy on the horizon that seeks to align and coordinate efforts to support this stakeholder group, it is an opportune moment to look at the social and environmental contributions of MSMEs to Ghana’s development priorities, and how policy solutions can leverage these contributions. Furthermore, as MSME activities in specific sectors – for example in the waste management sector – receive increasing attention, there is opportunity for a coordinated effort to address challenges.
By bringing together different perspectives and experiences, the SEED Practitioner Labs for Policy Prototyping provides an opportunity to build partnerships and holistic solutions. Read more
By bringing together different perspectives and experiences, the SEED Practitioner Labs for Policy Prototyping provides an opportunity to build partnerships and holistic solutions. Read more
SDGs:
An Entrepreneur’s Motivation to Move Forward
Published: 17 August 2020 Khawla Rammali, Linde Wolters
Upon reflection, Kenya based Jackline Lang'at feels she may have given up too quickly. The 2016 Award winner was piloting the construction of eco-friendly, durable roads while working with women and youth, when elections hit, cashflow stalled and dedication wavered. Now four years on, Jackline is looking back on her failure but keen to launch a new venture. We caught up with her to learn from her experience, a timely discussion in the context of the COVID-19 crisis and its risk to the survival of many small businesses. Read more
SDGs:
SEED Award Winner Life Out Of Plastic - L.O.O.P Featured on the World Economic Forum
Source: World Economic Forum
Through mass beach cleanups and education, L.O.O.P is showing first-hand how plastic pollution is damaging the environment while engaging companies to take action at the source. The video is featured on UpLink a digital platform to crowdsource innovations which address the world’s most pressing problems. Read more
SDGs:
UN High-Level Political Forum 2020 - Eco-Inclusive Enterprises and COVID-19
Published: 05 August 2020
As momentum builds for post-pandemic recovery, eco-inclusive enterprises around the world offer inspiring examples of inspiring solutions. Learn about their response and vision for a green recovery with Frontier Markets (India), Farmerline (Ghana), Amazóniko (Colombia), Gorilla Conservation Coffee (Uganda), Kibébé (Malawi) and EcoPlastile (Uganda). Read more
Recovering better: Global opportunities to jumpstart the real economy
Published: 31 July 2020
While the coronavirus pandemic presents enormous health and economic challenges, there are also opportunities to jumpstart economies and rebuild societies through green recovery plans that are aligned with the 2030 Agenda. This was the main takeaway of a dialogue that took place at Recovering better: Global opportunities for jumpstarting the real economy #GO4SDGs, a side event at the 2020 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF 2020). Read more
Eco-Inclusive Enterprises: Forerunners in Advancing the SDGs | SEED SDG Impact Snapshot
Published: 15 July 2020 Linde Wolters, Mirko Zürker, Net Pornlumon Nirachatsuwan
As governments respond to the wide-ranging problems resulting from the COVID-19 crisis, it’s worth thinking about how we may take this opportunity to shift towards a green economy. Because the way we recover from this crisis will impact our fight against climate change and our progress towards achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.
A green recovery calls for investments in solutions that provide social, environmental and economic benefits to people, especially those in vulnerable and marginalised communities. SEED-supported eco-inclusive enterprises and other Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) already promote green-technologies while including low-income people in their value chain.
The SEED Impact Snapshot helps to reveal the versatility of the impact of eco-inclusive enterprises. It also helps to clarify where there is the biggest potential for their SDG contributions and how policymakers may help unlock that potential further. Read more
A green recovery calls for investments in solutions that provide social, environmental and economic benefits to people, especially those in vulnerable and marginalised communities. SEED-supported eco-inclusive enterprises and other Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) already promote green-technologies while including low-income people in their value chain.
The SEED Impact Snapshot helps to reveal the versatility of the impact of eco-inclusive enterprises. It also helps to clarify where there is the biggest potential for their SDG contributions and how policymakers may help unlock that potential further. Read more
SDGs:
SMEs for an African Green Economy
Published: 14 July 2020
On July 1st, Lewis Akenji, Executive Director of SEED, participated in a webinar that showcased the work that SEED and other organisations are currently doing to build a green, fair future for Africa. The webinar was part of the African Forum on Green Economy series of webinars that ran from April to July 2020. Read more
SDGs:
Status quo and future outlook: what does COVID-19 mean for BDS providers in India?
Published: 14 July 2020 Amar Munnolimath, Dr. Malini Balakrishnan, Elena Eckhardt
To assess the status quo and future outlook of what COVID-19 means for BDS providers in India, SEED India Hub invited BDS providers to take part in a virtual co-creation session. During the co-creation session that took place on 28th May 2020, BDS providers identified several challenges that both enterprises and BDS providers face due to COVID-19 and prototyped novel solutions addressing persistent challenges. Read more
SDGs:
Nature's Nectar Limited (Zambia) wins Energy Globe Award
Energy Globe Award Source: Energy Globe Award
The 2019 SEED Africa Award Finalist is awarded National Winner of the "Energy Globe“ World Award for Sustainability. Read more
SDGs:
Green Bio Energy Ltd (Uganda) wins Energy Globe Award
Energy Globe Awards Source: Energy Globe Awards
The 2014 SEED Low Carbon Award Winner awarded National Winner of the "Energy Globe“ World Award for Sustainability. Read more
SDGs:
Last mile distribution startup Frontier Markets raises $2.25M in Pre-Series A
Sujata Sangwan Source: Your Story
The 2014 SEED Low Carbon Award winner Jaipur-based last mile rural distribution startup, Frontier Markets, on Monday announced that it has raised $2.25 million in a Pre-Series A funding round. Read more
SDGs:
