What is Minka-dev

Minka-dev is the first online marketplace of business opportunities with social and environmental impact. We seek to empower disadvantaged population through the implementation of sustainable and innovative business solutions.

We meet needs that represent opportunities for both sides: business development and poverty reduction.

We generate strong networks with potential actors in a scenario of inclusive markets. These actors (what we classify by: detectors of needs, drivers of solutions, sponsors, investors and associates) are connected by a common goal of creating business solutions to tackle a need generated in an impoverished community. All of these gears towards resolving factors of poverty and stimulate the development of a new logic of business development.. Collective action helps overcome the barriers created by market constraints, present in impoverished communities. The potential for replication and scale is in developing solutions based on current needs in various communities, which, while maintaining their locality, are common to other impoverished populations.

We connect the needs and aspirations of society’s most disadvantaged groups with innovative, inclusive and sustainable business solutions. The Minka-Dev platform promotes equal access to opportunities, favoring the creation of economic development ecosystems that are comprehensive, inclusive and sustainable.

Our origins

Minka-Dev brings together the wealth of experience held by its founders and partners in the area of business development within poverty-stricken contexts, in which the methodology used by Minka-Dev has been partially or fully implemented.

The experience we have gathered from several projects in Latin America, India and Uganda in various business sectors (ICT, micro-finance, energy, water, food and agriculture), has enabled us to identify the huge gap between the thousands of needs in deprived communities, (which, if met, would contribute to the reduction of poverty), and the vast majority of the world’s business solutions that focus only on addressing a tiny proportion of the world’s population.

Why Minka-dev

A great Base of the Pyramid: Over 4,000 million vulnerable persons in the world live in poverty.

Growing: In 2050, 85% of the world population will live in developing countries.

With many unsolved challenges – A great amount of basic needs, desires and possibilities for development that are unmet.

Need of a more sustainable and efficient development model. Solutions based exclusively on philanthropic models have proven to be unsustainable and limited in efficiency to reduce poverty.
Most low-income populations have no access to models of sustainable consumption and production.

A growing business and social interest to promote business initiatives that creates a positive impact on society.

Many opportunities for business growth - Market valued at 5,000 million dollars.

Most MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) are in the Base of the Pyramid populations.

An increased need for the internationalization and innovation of companies.

Development of comparative advantages - inclusive and sustainable models for business development are becoming the next competitive advantage of companies. The problems of the most excluded people require more innovation in product / service and business models.

What do we do?

Mission

Create business and social development ecosystems more innovative, inclusive and sustainable in impoverished communities.

Vision

Being a leading platform in identifying business opportunities, which have a direct impact on poverty reduction and environmental care, business attraction and promotion of inclusive, sustainable and innovative business addressed to the opportunities identified in Minka-dev.

Being a benchmark organization in building cross-sector partnerships around business development and poverty reduction opportunities.

Three pillars of Minka-dev


minka-dev

 

Inside Minka-dev

Principles

  • Contribute directly to the creation of business development ecosystems in order to reduce poverty
  • Actively integrate the impoverished populations that are set to benefit from the process of value creation
  • Provide dynamism and innovation.
  • Generate business models in which the creation of business value is aligned with the creation of social and environmental value.
  • Establish direct links between business needs and business solutions that represent opportunities for both business development and poverty reduction.
  • Build alternatives that are always based on sustainable, responsible and innovative models.
  • Strengthen collaboration between different actors to boost innovation, efficiency and the feasibility, effectiveness and sustainability of inclusive business solutions.

Values

  • Transparency in relationships with our stakeholders and the beneficiaries of Minka-Dev projects.
  • Respect and tolerance for differences.
  • Independence and complete impartiality to choose the best solution for Minka-Dev business opportunities.
  • Innovation to drive comprehensive business solutions that generate results in reducing poverty.
  • Cooperation for the effective creation of inclusive and sustainable ecosystems for business development.
  • An entrepreneurial attitude in the development of each of our initiatives.
  • Passion for what we do.

Objectives

  • To create opportunities for individual and collective development for citizens and communities in contexts of poverty (BOP).
  • To generate business opportunities and innovation based on specific needs and demands.
  • To encourage the creation of inclusive businesses addressed to impoverished populations.
  • To encourage social innovation, technology and business addressed to the populations at the BOP.
  • To build partnerships across sectors to develop comprehensive and sustainable business solutions.
  • To sensitize business and social sectors about the opportunities to generate systemic changes through the development of inclusive business.
  • To replicate businesses which generate social and environmental impact, in new contexts and populations.
  • To generate knowledge based on the experience gained in Minka-Dev projects (Minka-Dev Think Tank).
  • To actively participate in the implementation of businesses that create social impact (Minka-Dev Enterprises).

Corporate information

Minka-Dev is a Limited Company registered in Barcelona, Spain with presence in several countries through its network of strategic associated partners.
 

Minka-Dev was established with the aim of helping alleviate poverty and reduce environmental damage through the creation of inclusive, innovative, accountable and sustainable business. This is how:

  • Remuneration of members, allies and partners of Minka-Dev is based on the market standards of social enterprises.
  • It is our goal to create positive social and environmental impacts through the promotion of sustainable business actions.
  • 15% of Minka-Dev’s annual profits go to the populations that benefit from the business activity created by Minka-Dev Business Opportunities with social impact. In this way we aim to strengthen the ecosystems for inclusive business development we have generated.