International Programs
ISED works on sustainable economic development projects in Asia, Eastern Europe, and Africa—worldwide—to help improve the livelihoods of people and the financial, agricultural, and business systems that serve them.
Project Overview
The Institute for Social and Economic Development (ISED) believes that the work we do in developing countries should be:
1. Simple, i.e., uses appropriate technology and existing knowledge, resources and methods as much as possible
2. Sustainable, i.e., have lower costs and are based on approaches that the local communities and populations will be able, willing, even eager to use in the foreseeable future
3. Ethical, i.e., assures that everyone along the value chain, from producer to customer, is treated fairly.
Organizational Profile of Beneficiaries
ISED subcontracts and collaborates with USAID, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), to design programs that benefit low and moderate income populations. Among our clients have been CHF International in Kosovo, USAID in Tunisia and North Africa, Project Concern International in Malawi, and the Lao American Partnership in Laos.
Project Activities
For CHF International, ISED helped staffs design and implement a business development service that focused on preparing construction sector entrepreneurs to run businesses and access capital to start or expand small enterprises.
In Tunisia and North Africa, ISED worked under contract with USAID to promote the expansion of women owned businesses, and to link these new entrepreneurs with markets in Europe and the United States.
In Laos, ISED designed a remittance based Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) that opened small medical clinics across the country. These clinics operated with membership fees paid by US remitters on behalf of family members still living in Laos.
In Malawi, ISED has helped Project Concern International (PCI) design and implement a supply chain for the profitable production and marketing and sales of pond produced fish. This work has involved locating production inputs and producing financial models to test profitability scenarios.
Upcoming Events
ISED’s consultants and staffs will return to Malawi and Laos in the coming months to complete work on these outstanding projects. In April 2010, the Lao American Partnership will open an 80 bed free standing medical facility in Vientiane.
Period
On-going through 2011.
Funder
USAID through Project Concern International
Project Manager
Dan Krotz