iDE is a leader in creating inclusive and resilient market ecosystems, particularly in the water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) sector. They are committed to alleviating poverty by empowering the rural poor to access products and services through a functioning market ecosystem that is inclusive of all people and resilient to shocks such as conflict or changing climates. iDE utilizes a human-centered design (HCD) approach where they listen to every stakeholder – producers, suppliers, retailers, and customers – to identify why a market might be inefficient, dysfunctional or broken. Consequently, they develop solutions that create robust ecosystems, connecting market participants on an even playing field.

For example, they revolutionized the sanitation market in Cambodia by designing and commercializing the Easy Latrine, an affordable and aspirational toilet, and unleashed the potential of local entrepreneurs to sell, manufacture, and install the product at a market price that allowed them to grow their businesses. Between 2011 and 2019, iDE facilitated the sale of 340,000 latrines in Cambodia, contributing to an increase in sanitation coverage in program provinces from 29% in 2012 to 73% in 2019.

iDE utilizes multiple project-level indicators, but the three global key performance indicators they look at to measure their impact are:

1) Scale: the number of households with which they work; in 2020, iDE’s programs helped 879,525 new individuals

2) Impact: the average annual net household increase in both income and savings achieved by households they work with; in 2020, the average annual net household increase in income or livelihood savings was $264

3) Social Return on Investment (SROI): the ratio of money spent by iDE relative to the aggregate increased income generated (or saved, for their WASH portfolio), by participating households; in 2020, iDE’s SROI was $13:1

iDE’s HCD approach enables them to create products, services and processes that fill gaps in market systems in any location and help solve everyday problems for the people they work with. Relying on HCD principles, iDE examines the user experience in each context, looks at how a solution should be built and promoted, financed, delivered and serviced. These insights are then used to iteratively generate, prototype, and refine solutions with the final users themselves. The result is a market-ready product or service that is transformative, maintainable, and affordable to consumers, in addition to being technically feasible and economically viable for manufacturers and other stakeholders in the market system. By implementing the HCD approach, iDE is helping to ensure that there is room for innovation and adaptation.

iDE shares their insights and experiences with three primary audiences: like-minded implementers in the sector, government, and civil society partners. They show up armed with informative and frank analysis to create transparent dialogue around what’s working or not, and how the sector can collectively deepen its impact. By engaging with these various stakeholders, iDE can influence policies around market-based solutions to social issues. Beyond engagements and collaborations at sector events, iDE partners with corporate and foundation supporters in their efforts to increase impact through their market-based approach.