Innovations Against Poverty (IAP) is a challenge fund that supports companies developing products, services and business models that benefit people living in poverty while being commercially viable. Funded by Sida and managed by SNV in partnership with Inclusive Business Partners and BoP Inc, IAP combines grant funding with tailored advisory support in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Uganda and Zambia, across energy, agri-food, WASH and ICT.

Inclusive Business Partners has been part of IAP since 2016, working on evaluating business models, investment readiness, investor matchmaking and impact measurement. IAP is now in its third phase, IAP 3.0.

What happens after the grant ends?

Not all projects get the chance to follow up its impact once the support ends. In 2026, an independent long-term study by DevLearn followed 26 businesses supported in IAP 2.0, two to six years after support ended. According to the study:

• 25 of the 26 businesses are still operating.
• 85% are growing or holding steady.
• 80% of those still operating have secured or are raising further investment.

One example is ChapChap, a Ugandan digital payments platform. It has grown from one district to 54 and now serves 22 million customers a month. Its founder credits IAP with connecting the company to its first equity investor.

The study also found that investment-readiness support works best when it is matched to where a business is in its development. That lesson is now shaping how IAP 3.0 supports its companies.

Read the key findings on the IAP website

For more information about the project, please contact Ana Perez Aponte ana.p.aponte@inclusivebusiness.se.