innovationXchange (IxC) Frontier Innovators – doing business, delivering impact

  • Media release

Today I announce the winners of the iXc Frontier Innovators initiative, recognising outstanding social enterprises delivering development impact for communities in the Indo-Pacific region.

Frontier Innovators recognises the important role that the private sector plays in tackling policy development problems and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

Fifteen outstanding Frontier Innovators have been selected from over 700 applications. Each winner will receive up to $100,000 to help accelerate their businesses and broaden their development impact.

The 15 winners represent a diverse range of sectors and innovative business models across the Indo-Pacific region:

  • Amartha, a peer-to-peer platform connecting rural villagers with lenders in Indonesia;
  • aQysta, a hydro-powered irrigation systems provider in Nepal, Afghanistan and Indonesia;
  • ATEC, a manufacturer of biodigesters which transform waste into renewable gas and organic fertiliser in Cambodia;
  • BagoSphere, a faster, smarter way for disconnected youth to launch careers in the Philippines;
  • Gham Power, an off-grid solar project developer for businesses and remote communities in Nepal;
  • iGrow, connecting farmers with capital and underutilised land to produce organic food in Indonesia;
  • Jeeon, a provider of training and equipment to help remote doctors improve medical patient advice in Bangladesh;
  • Koe Koe Tech, a developer of mobile software applications targeting social issues such as maternal and child health in Myanmar;
  • Mamma's Laef, a distributor of environmentally-friendly, reusable menstrual hygiene pads for women in Vanuatu;
  • Nora's Plantation Foods, a business which sources fresh local crops to make tasty, nutritious food and increase employment in Samoa;
  • Proximity, a designer of impactful agriculture and finance products to increase quality of life in rural Myanmar;
  • Sehat Kahani, a telehealth service which allows homebound female doctors to provide remote solutions in Pakistan;
  • Shreenagar, an integrated farming service providing farmers with quality livestock, market access and capacity building programs in Nepal;
  • SkyEye, a company offering vehicle tracking and aerial imagery software solutions tailor-made for regional conditions in Samoa;
  • Taste of Tonga, a supplier of single-origin local produce with a focus on waste minimisation and renewable energy in Tonga.

The iXc Frontier Innovators represent the first part of our $15 million Scaling Frontier Innovation program supporting social entrepreneurship in the Indo-Pacific.

This will be achieved through four, interconnected interventions:Frontier Innovators, Frontier Incubators, Frontier Brokers, and Frontier Capital.More information can be found on www.scalingfrontierinnovation.org.

The innovationXchange is the ideas hub established within DFAT in 2015 to drive more effective outcomes in Australia's overseas development assistance program through innovation and public and private sector partnerships.

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