Global Easy Water Products works with smallholder farmers to make the most of their fields.
Investment Stories
The Challenge
- Today in India, 260 million smallholder farmers live on less than one dollar a day, representing more than 20% of the world's 1.2 billion extreme poor.
- Modern irrigation technologies have catered to large farmers with fields of four hectares or larger, with no affordable solution for small farmers.
- India is a water-scarce country, accounting for 16 percent of the world's human population but less than 4 percent of the world's water resources. The share of water available for agriculture is declining fast, and small landholders are the first to be affected by these water shortages.
The Innovation
- Building on more than twenty years of innovation, the promoters of GEWP have approached product design by placing smallholder farmers at the core of the design process from the outset, ensuring affordability and applicability.
- GEWP's distribution strategy leverages market forces by relying on existing small-scale manufacturers and a network of private local dealers to reach its target customers in rural India.
The Impact
- Recent studies have shown that GEWP's products raise the income of its small-scale farming customers by an average of $400/year. This is done through water savings (30-50%), energy savings (50%) and increased crop yields (30-70%).
- In 2003 Acumen Fund invested in GEWP's parent organization, International Development Enterprises - India (IDE-I). During the term of Acumen Fund's investment, IDEI sold more than 125,132 units in six Indian states, directly impacting the lives of 650,686 people.
- Acumen is coming in as the first equity investor in GEWP. This capital should enable GEWP to reach more than 220,000 additional smallholder farmers in the first five years, representing 1.1 million individuals impacted.