Enhancing the capacity of microfinance: technical support to Bina Artha, Indonesia

Bina Artha, a microfinance institution in Indonesia, sought to scale its operations and extend financial inclusion to underserved communities. As a venture capital firm, Bina Artha employed a modified Grameen group-lending methodology to reach clients typically excluded from formal financial systems. To support its expansion and long-term sustainability, MSC was engaged to provide comprehensive technical assistance focused on strengthening Bina Artha’s operational, financial, human resource, and management information systems (MIS).

MSC’s engagement covered six core areas critical to institutional strengthening. It began with product attribute-based market research to understand client needs and design relevant financial products. MSC then documented the complete client lifecycle operations—from acquisition and appraisal to disbursement, collection, and delinquency management. To enhance internal consistency and operational efficiency, MSC developed structured systems for both branch-level and back-office functions. Additionally, MSC built a robust financial accounting system to manage book keeping, streamline data flow, and ensure accurate reconciliation. It also established human resource systems covering recruitment, training, compensation, and policy development to boost organizational capacity. Finally, MSC designed and implemented a customized management information system (MIS) to support data-driven decision-making and improve institutional oversight.

This end-to-end support significantly improved the institution’s operational efficiency. MSC’s interventions provided Bina Artha with the tools and systems needed to scale sustainably and deliver inclusive financial services to low-income populations. The work built a strong institutional foundation for performance improvement and future growth.

Bina Artha commissioned the project.

Digitizing payments in the cocoa value chain in Ghana

Moving away from cash-based transactions to digital payments could enhance financial security, improve efficiency, and increase transparency in the cocoa trade. However, Ghana’s smallholder cocoa farmers and local cocoa-buying companies struggled to adopt digital payment systems. Recognizing these adoption challenges, the Earthworm Foundation (EWF) Ghana partnered with MSC to train their team and equip them with the tools needed to evaluate the digital readiness of cocoa farmers and cocoa-buying companies.

The Helix Institute at MSC developed a customized training program for the Earthworm Foundation Ghana’s staff. The training covered digital payment feasibility assessments, market research techniques, stakeholder engagement, and evaluation methods. Additionally, MSC created digital readiness assessment tools to help the team analyze the preparedness of farmers and cocoa-buying companies to adopt digital payments. We also provided hands-on support during initial assessments to ensure that the team gained both theoretical knowledge and practical experience to evaluate digital payment integration.

As a result of MSC’s intervention, the Earthworm Foundation Ghana’s staff developed the skills to assess the digital readiness of cocoa-buying companies and gained a deeper understanding of the factors that influence digital adoption. The team also learned market research techniques to evaluate cocoa farmers’ willingness to transition to digital payments. As part of the initiative, we assessed three cocoa-buying companies and provided specific recommendations on digitization strategies.

The Gates Foundation commissioned the project.

Scaling of AgTech innovations for food security in India, Indonesia, and Kenya

The adoption of technology is critical to address food security challenges in low- and moderate-income countries (LMICs). However, despite the increasing availability of mobile technology and lower data costs, the adoption of agricultural technology (AgTech) remains low. Currently, only about 50 million smallholder farmers, or 10% of the total smallholder farmers in LMICs, have access to AgTech solutions. Financial barriers, limited investment, and inadequate support from financial service providers prevented the scale-up of AgTech innovations.

MSC was engaged to identify effective financial solutions that can drive the growth and adoption of AgTechs in LMICs. We conducted a rapid landscape study in India, Kenya, and Indonesia to analyze the AgTech ecosystem and assess financial solutions. We mapped key stakeholders, evaluated existing financial models, and assessed their impact in overcoming adoption barriers. We developed an analytical framework to identify the most effective financial solutions and the conditions necessary for their success. We used our Market Insights for Innovation and Design (MI4ID) framework to incorporate insights from consultations with stakeholders and ensured a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities in AgTech financing.

Based on these findings, MSC provided practical recommendations for donors, development agencies, financial service providers, and governments. These recommendations focused on the design and implementation of programs that support financial solutions for AgTechs.

The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) commissioned this project.

Transforming agricultural markets in Bihar: strengthening value chains and farmer participation

Smallholder farmers in Bihar, India, struggled to access agricultural markets. Weak infrastructure, limited value-added opportunities, and inadequate policy support prevented them from scaling their operations and earning higher profits. The lack of farmers’ collectives and gaps in price information further restricted their participation in agricultural value chains.

MSC implemented the Bihar Agricultural Marketing Network project to strengthen market systems through policy improvements, infrastructure development, and institutional capacity building. This multiyear initiative sought to create an efficient, accessible market environment for farmers to drive inclusive agricultural transformation in Bihar.

MSC worked closely with the Government of Bihar and provided strategic consulting on agricultural marketing policies. It strengthened farmer producer organizations (FPOs), promoted agri-exports, and improved market infrastructure. MSC-led activities enhanced value chains through stronger linkages, reduced price information gaps, and improved data collection. Additionally, MSC unlocked financial resources, facilitated policy reforms, and scaled market-related interventions to accelerate agricultural growth.

The project successfully delivered significant outcomes. It unlocked more than USD 356 million to support and expand market-related interventions in Bihar. It also activated more than 100 market nodes to collect real-time price and arrival data, which were integrated into the Government of India’s Agmarknet portal. The initiative also played a key role to advance policy reforms in agri-export regulations, FPO formation, and the allocation of public market assets.

Capacity-building efforts were also a major focus. More than 200 government officials, 191 FPOs and farmer producer companies (FPCs), and 112 agri-exporters across 28 districts in Bihar received training to enhance their market participation and operational efficiency. These interventions strengthened primary and secondary markets, improved infrastructure, and created new economic opportunities for small-scale producers and women-led collectives.

The Gates Foundation commissioned this project to MSC for the Government of Bihar.

Gender-inclusive aquaculture transformation in India

Inland aquaculture and fisheries offer significant opportunities to improve women’s livelihoods, incomes, and resilience in Bihar, India. However, many fisherwomen face challenges, such as unequal work distribution, lack of decision-making power, limited financial resources, poor access to technology, and restricted roles in the value chain beyond fish production.

To address these challenges, MSC implemented a multiyear gender-inclusive inland aquaculture transformation initiative. MSC strengthened women’s self-help groups (SHGs) and supported smallholder fisherwomen through strategic consulting and capacity-building programs. We provided training to enhance technical skills in fisheries, facilitated access to better fish species, introduced sustainable aquaculture practices, and promoted nutrition awareness through behavioral change communication.

One of MSC’s most impactful interventions was the establishment of Matsya Sakhis—trained experts on aquaculture and fisheries from the community. These experts are equipped with the necessary knowledge and tools to improve fish farming, enhance nutrition literacy, and advocate for gender equality in the fisheries sector.

The program also drove a strong nutrition awareness campaign using puppet videos, recipe booklets, and community workshops, which benefited adolescent girls and young children. The project empowered fisherwomen through enhanced control over resources, improved household nutrition, more income, and long-term resilience.

The program reached 200,000 households across 2,300 ponds and significantly improved fish production and household nutrition. Household fish consumption increased as families started to consume 15% more large fish species and 85% more small fish varieties directly from their ponds. The initiative also contributed to Bihar’s aquaculture sector by generating an estimated economic value of more than USD 13 million.

The Gates Foundation commissioned this project.

Business plan analysis for modern agriculture communities (MACs), Cambodia

In Cambodia, most agricultural production is carried out by smallholder farmers. These farmers face significant challenges, such as limited access to technology, finance, markets, and infrastructure. The impacts of climate change exacerbated these challenges. To address these issues, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF) conceptualized the Modern Agriculture Communities (MACs) to establish economically robust agricultural enterprises. MACs would help farmers overcome traditional challenges and adapt to climate change.

MSC had to develop a comprehensive business plan to establish and operationalize MACs. We conducted a detailed literature review and secondary research to analyze Cambodia’s agricultural landscape and the challenges smallholder farmers face. We designed quantitative and qualitative research tools, which included structured surveys, focus group discussion (FGD) guides, and key informant interview (KII) frameworks, to gather robust data from various stakeholders. We then conducted a quantitative survey with more than 300 farmers across four crops, organized eight FGDs with MAC management and farmer members, and held six KIIs with value chain actors. These insights form the basis for the development of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for MACs and a business plan template.

MSC developed a value proposition and market strategy for the MACs and created a detailed financial blueprint and management framework. We also designed practical SOPs and a business plan template to support the successful implementation and scaling of the MAC initiative across Cambodia. The initiative also promoted gender equality, as women comprised a significant portion of agricultural cooperative members.

The Cowater International, which manages the CAPRED facility, commissioned this project.