FAQs

  1. What are the selection criteria for 2011 India Development Marketplace (DM)?
     A: Proposals will be evaluated on four broad criteria-
    (a) Social Impact – providing low income communities with greater access to goods/services, and/or income generation opportunities.
    (b) Sustainability – enterprises need to have been operational for at least two years and demonstrate they are on a pathway to organizational and financial self- sufficiency.
    (c) Growth Potential – proposals should exhibit potential for being replicable/ scalable and be of potential interest to social investors and/or mainstream venture investors and financial institutions.
    (d) Innovation – the extent to which the organization and project have innovative and inclusive approaches to lowering costs and enhancing affordability.
  2. What is meant by an inclusive business model?
     A: Inclusive business models are those offering goods, services and livelihoods to the poor in financially sustainable and scalable ways. Inclusive businesses productively integrate those living at the base of the economic pyramid into their value chains as consumers, producers and/or distributors.
  3. What is meant by scale up?
    A: In this context, scalability is indented when a project can be expanded within a geographic area, besides the one in which it is already being implemented, to benefit more people.
  4. How would social impact be measured?
     A: The applicant organization will need to exemplify by presenting indicators already in use for measurement of social impact.
  5. What kind of impact should the project have already demonstrated to be considered at 2011 India DM?
    A:  In the application form, applicants are required to indicate the current social impact. To the extent possible, metrics and indicators on how such impact is being measured need to be provided.Note:Indicators can either be quantitative (usually referring to a numerical amount, answering questions such as How much? or How many?) or qualitative (information regarding how people feel about an experience or what opinions they hold). In either case, indicators should be clear, discrete and measurable.
  6. How would financial sustainability of the project be measured?
     A: Proposals should demonstrate that the organization is on the pathway of financial self-sufficiency. To this end, applicants will need to provide a copy of the a) financial statements for the past 2 financial years, and b) a project plan with operating and financial forecasts for the next 3-5 years.
  7. How much is the grant amount for winners of 2011 India DM?
     A: 50,000 USD (approx. 22,50,000 INR) for each of the 13 winners.
  8. Can we look for co-funding for the same project in the same period if our budget is more than the grant?
     A: Yes.
  9. If our project is not on ‘livelihoods’, can we still apply for 2011 India DM?
    A: The proposals must reflect the overall goal of improving the livelihoods of poor communities in at least one of the three target states. To be considered eligible, the proposals must clearly demonstrate how they are achieving this goal by either:

    1. Delivering infrastructure and/or a range of  products and services to poor communities(e.g. energy, food, water, education, healthcare, financial services)

      OR

    2. Contributing to increased income mobility of low income groups by involving them either as employees, producers and/or business owners or consumers and/or clients (e.g. vocational training, livelihood support, agricultural productivity and supply chain, rural manufacturing and service jobs)
  10. Do the projects have to directly impact the livelihood of the community?
     A: The innovation has to either directly impact the livelihood of the community or enhance the scope for better livelihood.
  11. Is the competition open for all? What are the eligibility criteria to apply for the 2011 India DM?
     A: The competition is open to only those organizations and projects that have been operational for at least two years and can demonstrate potential for being scaled up or replicated in a financially sustainable manner.  The proposals should be able to demonstrate a track record of successful project implementation and commercial sustainability, with the organizational capacity to scale these projects to the target levels, and achieve maximum social impact. For more on eligibility, please visit https://dm-india.com/eligibility-selection-criteria
    Organizations owned and led by women entrepreneurs are particularly encouraged to apply, and three grants would be exclusively awarded to women entrepreneurs.
  12. We have a successful model that has been implemented in other states (but not in Bihar, Rajasthan, and Orissa) and we would want to replicate it in Bihar/Rajasthan/Orissa. Are we eligible to apply for 2011 India DM?
     A: Yes, you can apply for 2011 India DM, if you are willing to replicate the model in one of the 3 focus states with the grant funds.
  13. Can I apply as an individual social entrepreneur?
    A: 2011 India DM is only open to organizations registered in India. Individuals that are not affiliated to any organization cannot apply.
  14. I am an individual but have a partner organization in one of the three states that is willing to scale the innovation, am I eligible to apply?
     A:  Only organizations are eligible to apply for 2011 India DM.
  15. Can individuals/organizations outside of India apply?
    A: 2011 India DM is only open to organizations registered in India.
  16. Can an organization submit more than one proposal application?
    A: Yes, an organization is permitted to submit more than one proposal application, given that each model for which funding is being sought has no overlap with the other.
  17. How can we apply for this grant competition-India Development Marketplace?
    A: All applications must be submitted online. Please visit https://dm-india.com/index.aspx for further details.
  18. When is the last date for submission?
    A: Key Dates:

    1. The competition will be launched on December 10, 2010
    2. The deadline for submitting applications is 05:00 PM (IST) on Thursday, January 27, 2011
    3. The 30 finalists will be informed of their selection by Monday, March 7, 2011
    4. Winners will be announced at the Development Marketplace event, on April 6, 2011, in Jaipur.
  19. We have more doubts while filling in the application form, who can we ask?
     A: For any questions or queries, please contact us at:
  20. How can we make changes to the application after submitting?
    A: It is not possible to make any changes once the application is finally submitted. It is suggested that you review your application once before finally submitting it.
  21. How can we submit our supporting documents?
    A: There are options of uploading the soft copies of the supporting documents in the application form only. It will support upto 1MB of such attachments, except for PROJECT PLAN, where the limit is 2 MB. Hardcopies of supporting documents may be scanned and attached.
  22. Can the application be posted/ couriered?
    A: No, applications are only accepted online through the specific online submission process.
  23. Can the application form be downloaded and emailed?
    A: No, the form cannot be emailed. The application can only be made through the online submission process.
  24. Will we receive a confirmation of submission and a feedback on our application?
    A: Once the application is submitted, the application screen will display a unique Proposal Number, along with the submission date and time. These may be used for future correspondence with the DM team.
    All applicants will know the outcome of their application by email. However, no personalised feedback will be given on the rejected applications. The decision of the assessors/jury in all these matters will be final.
  25. Will our application be viewable to the public?
     A: No. It will only be accessible to World Bank Institute, IFC, Innovation Alchemy and Jury members.
  26. Who will be judging entries?
     A: All applications will be thoroughly reviewed by an expert panel consisting of World Bank, IFC, investors and the development community.
  27. Will I be notified if I have been shortlisted?
    A: The list of the 30 shortlisted proposals will be posted on the DM India website and the shortlisted applicants will also be contacted via email.

Case Studies

Rangsutra

Envisaged as a bridge between artisans and consumers, Rangsutra works with small producer groups based in remote villages and towns in around 9 locations across the Indian states of Rajasthan, Uttaranchal and Assam. It strengthens economic security in vulnerable communities by empowering members to create top quality hand made products which are then sourced and marketed to urban consumers through leading retailers.

read more

  • Quote Rotator

    We are looking at this money more as in investment in infrastructure development as well as human resource development. We believe that the results of this will be seen very soon.
    Sumita Ghose, Managing Director, Rangsutra Crafts India Ltd.
    Through DM we have proposed to scale it up to different areas covering another 44,000 households where we can monitor the social security scheme. I am definitely thrilled and excited because this money will [make] us think in a different way, to upgrade our technology, our HR and streamlining our processes from a certain level to a different level. We need to build our capacity through DM.
    Mansingh Durga Prasad Nayak, Programme Director, (WOSCA)
    We feel honoured, we are a young enterprise and being recognized by an institution like World Bank is a great feeling. We are pretty enthused to move ahead in a comparatively faster manner...we are looking forward to the coming 24 months when we are going to get various kind of inputs.
    Devendra Shukla, Chief Operating Officer, Educate Girls
    In the last 3 years we have trained and placed 10,000 people [in jobs]. In this World Bank sponsored project we are trying to train and place 10,000 people in Bihar alone.
    Nishant Saxena, CEO Elements Akademia Pvt. Ltd.
    As far as scale is concerned, we have understood that a lot of capacity building is required for that. Resourcing and networking [with] other agencies is also important.
    Prabitra Mishra, Programme Director, Adhikar
    Basically a start-up needs to use the grant for the costs of capacity building of community, mobilization etc. Then there is the technical, research and development cost for doing the innovation part. The third necessity is providing the market linkage to the producer groups. These are the 3 core things that social entrepreneurs [look for] and for these, funds are not available. This will be the greatest benefit of the DM.
    Ravi Chandra, Managing Trustee, Bihar Development Trust
    DM is the beginning...it definitely feels good. It has taken a lot of thought process as to how we take reliable lighting sources to Bihar...Winning DM matters a lot...the financial support will help us to build infrastructure, develop capacity of people to implement the program [of providing quality lighting to the poor] properly in Bihar.
    Prasanta Biswal, Sr. Manager – Mission Projects, Selco Solar Lights (P) Ltd.

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