Established in March 2006, ACCESS was set up to help integrate financial markets so that the poor have access to financial services. Over the years, ACCESS has significantly evolved and emerged as a leading agency in the country that supports the growth of the microfinance sector in India at all levels of the financial value chain and also works on sustainable livelihoods solutions for the poor. Currently ACCESS supports 125 microfinance institutions across the country with an aggregate client base of around 4 million and a portfolio totaling nearly US$ 280 million. An ACCESS subsidiary, ASSIST (“Advisory and Support Services for Institutional Strengthening”) provides an array of services to smaller and mid-sized microfinance institutions in order to strengthen their capacity to attract investment by formal financial institutions, and thereby create a greater flow of on-lending funds to the microfinance sector in India. 

 

GSE is working with ACCESS to address the challenge of how more debt capital can be attracted by ASSIST member organizations, concentrating primarily on the perceived risk that these smaller MFIs hold and how to overcome the obstacles to securing capital that this perceived risk poses. GSE is analyzing the potential use of ratings, certifications and financial instruments for risk reduction, as well as identifying the attributes of MFIs and MFI networks that are most valued by banks.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Akanshka Foundation aims to impact the lives of less-privileged children and to enable them to maximize their potential and change their lives. Akanksha runs 57 after school “centers” that provide quality education for children living in slum communities of Mumbai and Pune. In 2007, Akanksha decided to expand into formal schools. Today Akanksha operates the School Project, a replicable model for urban schools based on high-performing charter schools in the U.S. The School Project currently has six schools serving 1,000 children.

 

GSE is working with Akanksha to address the problem of teacher supply and quality, one of the Foundation’s main challenges for delivering high-quality education in its schools and centers. GSE will examine existing teacher training and sourcing models in the U.S. to develop recommendations on replicable strategies for Akanksha. These recommendations will focus on ensuring Akanksha’s short-term and long-term success.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SEWA Managers School (SMS) is a branch of the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), a trade union established for poor, self-employed women in India. SMS was created as a means to educate “grassroots” managers who can then disseminate lessons and business skills to women entrepreneurs in rural and urban communities. Since 2005 SMS has trained 1,500 “master trainers” to reach over 700,000 trainees.

 

Currently, the organization’s is trying to balance the goals of achieving long-term financial sustainability, continuing program growth, and adhering to its mission to increase the self-sustainability of SEWA members. GSE will help SMS in its analysis of how best to balance these goals by evaluating the current financial structure and creating a comprehensive financial model to analyze the costs and revenues of existing and potential training programs and clients; the team will also explore alternate revenue generation opportunities.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Udyogini provides business services to train and develop women entrepreneurs in seven states in India. The organization works with poor women to improve their skills and their knowledge of the markets they operate in. Udyogini has recently identified an opportunity to connect poor and tribal women in the Northeast with the bamboo industry. Udyogini believes that tribal women can play an important role in the supply-side of the industry, weaving bamboo into mats for industrial use while significantly expanding their income opportunity.

 

GSE is working with Udyogini to determine the viability of this potential business. Together they are conducting research on the existing bamboo industry as well as regional supply and labor. From this research, GSE will develop a market analysis and financial model for the potential business. GSE will analyze the outcomes of these studies to make a final recommendation to Udyogini on the viability of engaging in the supply side of the bamboo value chain.