Shaping the future of inclusive business

Productive use appliances using renewable energy (PURE) have the potential to boost productivity by 50-400%, and therefore the revenues of dozens of millions of smallholder farmers. 

With such a strong business case, why are they not scaling faster?

This report explores where and how targeted investments in food value chains can simultaneously deliver strong nutritional impact and measurable environmental benefits, while meeting donor and investor ROI expectations.

Globally, more than four billion people—primarily in low- to middle-income segments—remain without adequate insurance coverage. This significant protection gap presents both a challenge and an opportunity for inclusive insurance solutions that can enhance financial resilience and social protection.

E-commerce is one of the fastest-growing sectors in Africa, projected to reach over 153 million users by 2029. The size of Africa’s e-commerce market is projected to increase by nearly 40% in the next four years…

More than 3 billion people are affected by micronutrient deficiencies, and one-third of the world's population suffers from anemia and zinc deficiency, particularly in developing countries. Mineral absorption is crucial for nutrient uptake, preventing deficiencies, maintaining mineral balance, supporting growth and development, and enhancing overall health. Inadequate mineral intake and absorption can lead to deficiencies; for example, a lack of iron may cause iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia.

Over the past 20 years, the world has witnessed a flourishing of business innovations addressing social and environmental issues, yet many initiatives have not reached the impact they and we would have hoped. However, there is much to learn from what they have achieved.

Large-scale food fortification (LSFF) can be one of the most cost-effective ways to address micronutrient deficiencies. However, while the case for society has been made clear, the business case for the private sector has not.

Running a company without business data is like driving a car without a dashboard. In collaboration with the Global Distributors Collective (GDC)* and with support from FCDO, we have leveraged extensive data to create a benchmark of 23 key performance indicators (KPIs) for LMDs...

From 2018 to 2023, together with French NGO Gret and a consortium of partners, the Hystra team co-led the design and implementation of the Meriem project, a 5-year effort to develop commercial solutions to prevent malnutrition in urban areas of the Sahel region...

Since 2020, Hystra has been supporting the Rural Support Network of Pakistan (RSPN) to launch and execute a market test in three rural districts of Pakistan, aiming to improve access and uptake of maternal nutrition products, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation…

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Novo Nordisk Foundation brought together expert representatives from academia, industry, national research partners and consultancies in a worskhop focused on R&D innovations to advance biofertilizers…

Four out of ten pregnant women worldwide suffer from anemia, which contributes to approximately 20% of maternal deaths. An ever-larger share of pregnant women suffers from other micronutrient deficiencies, as requirements for several vitamins and minerals increase by up to 50% during pregnancy. This is particularly true for women in LMICs…