VillageReach launches social businesses to improve the health systems of developing countries by addressing critical infrastructure gaps. We create businesses that are profitable, competitive, and socially beneficial. VillageReach’s model sustainably scales infrastructure services critical to the performance of the health system.
Businesses and individuals often require many of the same services as the health system. In developing countries broad demand exists for services such as transportation, energy, and communication. Reliable, cost-effective services are rare as a result of market fragmentation and other structural economic problems. Absent a comprehensive infrastructure framework, each health program must create its own facilities and systems to support its activities, a difficult task in low-resource communities.
VillageReach evaluates infrastructure gaps to assess opportunities for new social businesses that can develop a broad customer base beyond the health system and lower the overall cost of service. Our social business model focuses on three key infrastructure sectors: transport and logistics, energy supply, and communication and information technology. Significant gaps in these sectors severely limit not only health system performance, but also prevent other elements of community and regional economies from functioning adequately to support their populations.
Tools and Services
VillageReach utilizes a set of proven tools and services to strengthen support for health and development programs that serve under-privileged communities.
- A Market Demand Assessment provides a demand-side analysis by evaluating potential for organic growth potential and new market development opportunities.
- A Market Supply Assessment estimates the landscape of existing supply alternatives – potential competitors and partners.
- Solutions Response Options define ideal solutions alternatives, new paths to market, demand driven scenarios, and determines scenarios for displacement of legacy energy options.
- Resource Development Requirements provide a framework and specific estimates of requirements to develop the business: capital investment, financial requirements, management leadership, procurement/supply estimates, strategic partners, and go-to-market needs.
- A Strategic Management Overview summarizes the business opportunity, supply options, required resources and strategic response to develop the market opportunity. The overview provides the basis for the business plan to be developed once management has been assigned.
- VillageReach engages through consulting services, outsourcing and creation of its own social businesses.
