As part of the BIF team in India, Intellecap is currently providing consultancy support to a new BIF project working with Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) to review the operating model of its Gramin Suvidha Kendra (GSK) inclusive business model and develop a sustainable model for further scale up.

The first phase of project support involves a current state assessment to understand the factors affecting the sustainability of the program (see the project summary for further info).

Last month, we visited the GSK centres in three different states of India viz., Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra. The purpose of the visit was to understand the GSK operations, issues facing the farmers 

in the villages, their perception of the program, and also to evaluate how the public private partnership between MCX and India Post was working on the ground.

As we travelled from village to village, speaking with farmers, branch post masters and the GSK coordinators, trying to map the ecosystem in the area and understanding the value of the partnership for all stakeholders, it became apparent to us that each geography is unique and poses its unique set of challenges. Yet, some common observations came out, too:

• Pricing information provided by the initiative is crucial for farmers not least because often ecosystems involve middlemen who negotiate hard to bring down the prices on their terms. Market linkages offer the potential to eliminate the need to go through the middle men
• The availability of good quality agricultural inputs (seeds, fertilizers and pesticides) also provided by GSK with timely and guaranteed supply is a critical requirement
• The GSK awareness building programs on better farming practices and advances in agriculture seem to be working very well, but farmers are wary of trying new products/ technologies

Considering these circumstances, the importance of working in partnership with each partner having distinct roles becomes evident as a key factor for success of the initiative.

In the next phases of the project, we will focus on developing a sustainable model for GSK, support and monitor a pilot of the proposed model and finally develop a framework to replicate the model across other centres.