Dynamic emerging markets

OU has worked in dynamic, emerging markets, helping to generate strong opportunities for rapid growth. The team are skilled in identifying where projects or initiatives can make the most impact and achieve sustainable results

Examples of our expertise

RECONOMY (2022 – ongoing)

Donor: Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA); Implementer: HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation

OU conducted the inception review, provided advice on how to strengthen strategies for systemic outcomes. OU provides ongoing monitoring support to help the program establish a results measurement system aligned with the Donor Committee for Enterprise Development (DCED) Standard.

CBI Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) (2023 – ongoing)

OU implements programs to facilitate the export from IT services and dried fruit from Ghana to the European market.

Habitat for Humanity Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (2019 – 2022)

OU conducted an assessment of emerging affordable housing market systems in India, Kenya and The Philippines, conducted training workshops, improved tools and provided implementation support.

OU Flagship initiative: Katalyst, Bangladesh (2004 – 2009)

Donor: Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and UKAid, joined at different times by Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) and the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA)

Katalyst is globally recognized as the leading market development project. Several OU team members worked for Katalyst and were key contributors to developing the Katalyst approach which broke conventional norms and placed an emphasis on in-house learning, nurturing an entrepreneurial culture, and developing a flat team structure to support creativity and learning. This included working on results measurement to develop a world-class monitoring system, which is documented in a report capturing how to assess if markets work better for the poor – Experiences from Katalyst. The combined experience gained from Katalyst is fundamental to the approach taken by OU today.