Resource Library

COVID-19 has imposed extreme challenges for East Africa’s micro and small enterprise traders. The Sauti Trade Insights COVID-19 Bulletin leverages Sauti East Africa's unique analytical perspective to document traders’ changes in business behaviour in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We present key findings on the economic impacts of COVID-19 on traders, drawing on behavioural insights from our mobile-based market information platforms in Kenya and Rwanda. 

“Adaptive Approaches to Facilitating Finance in Myanmar’s Agriculture Sector: A Review“ provides examples of how VCRD empowered banks, farmers, and agri-businesses to identify, evaluate and tap previously elusive – or simply unavailable – financing opportunities in Myanmar, including pre-season working capital loans, microfinance, credit for input purchases and equipment, and pre-procurement loans (trade financing) – in many cases for the first time.

USAID’s Commercially Viable Conflict-Free Gold Project, known locally as “Zahabu Safi” is a five-year program, implemented in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by Global Communities and Levin Sources. The project is designed to build on recent successes achieved by donor-funded initiatives to export responsibly-produced gold to jewelry buyers in North America and Europe.

The Utkrisht Impact Bond will support private healthcare facilities in Rajasthan, India to achieve and sustain a standard of quality that will result in decreased maternal and newborn mortality.

Digital financial services (DFS) provide health programs with opportunities to accelerate progress toward global health goals and outcomes. By leveraging DFS, United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) global health program managers can improve health systems performance and support programmatic outcomes such as financial protection for vulnerable groups, delivery of essential health services, improved reach to marginalized communities, and increased health service demand and responsiveness.

These papers outline a process that programs can use to assess system changes regularly and practically. The 'Overview' summarises the approach and 'How to put it into practice' provides more detailed implementation guidance, worked examples, and useful tips.

USAID envisions a world in which advances in digital technologies are leveraged to help people access the information and services they need to live healthy and prosperous lives. Accelerating the Journey to Self-Reliance Through Strategic Investments in Digital Technologies: A Vision for Action in Digital Health is the Agency’s first dedicated policy guidance for its investments in digital technologies that support health programs in its partner countries.

Indonesian women’s roles in agriculture tend to be less visible and are frequently overlooked by agricultural input companies, government extension workers and even development programs. Unsurprisingly, gender considerations are largely absent from agricultural marketing activities and direct sales agent (DSA) models. To understand and address this gap, PRISMA conducted research on 10 agricultural sector partners and their respective DSA programs.

Achieving access to UHC requires contributions from public and private health institutions to meet a set of standards that collectively indicate high-performing health care. To help deliver on this aspirational goal, we work together to create high-quality health care that is Accountable, Affordable, Accessible, and Reliable.

Achieving access to UHC requires contributions from public and private health institutions to meet a set of standards that collectively indicate high-performing health care. To help deliver on this aspirational goal, we work together to create high-quality health care that is Accountable, Affordable, Accessible, and Reliable.

This new study builds off of the findings of The Canopy Lab's initial ‘gender and senior leadership in MSD/PSD programs’ survey and analyzes one of the most influential aspects of the entire recruitment process – the criteria listed for key personnel in USAID tender documents.  This new research looked at two areas:

The Inclusive Entrepreneurial Market Systems (IEMS) framework is a first step in building on existing enabling environment tools and market system theoretical frameworks to provide concrete guidance on how to examine the underlying variables in systems that may present barriers or opportunities to private sector engagement efforts.

Engaging the private sector in all stages of health system resilience is by nature a complex undertaking, most often occurring too late in a response and without adequate planning. Committed public and private champions who see the benefit of joint action are crucial, as is arming them with evidence-based best practices and guidance. This report presents a strategic approach that can guide USAID missions in addressing health system stressors and shocks, while supporting countries on the journey toward self-reliant, prepared, and resilient health systems.

This resource was originally published on Learning Lab. This guidance is intended to inform USAID staff, especially Mission project design and management teams and OAA staff, on options for designing flexible, shock responsive programs and as well as options to respond to shocks through existing development programs that were not designed with shock responsiveness in mind. 

This tool, developed by USAID, helps to prioritize the binding constraints for women entrepreneurs in a given country, especially at the SME level.

This assessment report provides potential programming opportunities that will assist in the development and support of livelihoods and income generating activities for EVD-affected communities. 

Digital financial services have expanded opportunities for millions of women across the globe. More than 240 million more women now have an account with a financial institution or mobile money service, compared to 2014.

CARE is pleased to share Left Out and Left Behind: Ignoring Women Will Prevent Us from Solving the Hunger Crisis, a new report on the importance of tackling gender inequality in response to the COVID-19 and hunger crises.

Feed the Future conducted a rapid market assessment of its roughly 150 partner agri-businesses and farmers to better understand the impact of the current crisis and the future outlook for the agriculture sector. 

This brief seeks to equip private sector and market systems development practitioners with practical and actionable guidance.

This fact sheet provides an overview of the background and the top takeaways from both guides.

The ILO Lab and the Mastercard Foundation joined forces to explore how a market systems approach can address the challenge of decent work for Africa’s youth.

Endorsed by G20 finance ministers, this report outlines 10 policy options to enable G20 members and other governments to rapidly work towards digital financial inclusion of all women.

Fail, Recalibrate, Adapt, Achieve is a new Lab brief on Yapasa, an ILO-FAO project on agribusiness and youth employment in rural Zambia. The brief dives into Yapasa’s four and a half year journey, which included a series of early missteps and unforeseen events.

The Lab has put together a user-friendly guide on how to quickly carry out the end-to-end process of a market systems analysis.