Pushti Ambassador Partnership-Creating income opportunities for female micro-entrepreneurs in Bangladesh

The project “Pushti Ambassadors Partnership – Creating jobs for female entrepreneurs in Bangladesh” has contributed to women’s economic empowerment and improved nutrition in rural Bangladesh. The project was originally a partnership between five organisations: 1) Arla Foods as lead commercial partner with the objective of increasing its sale of affordable dairy nutrition (Dano Daily Pushti – DDP) through exploring a model to untap rural markets and providing improved access to affordable dairy nutrition for low-income consumers 2) iSocial, who ran mircro-entrepeneur networks with the objective of increasing their income, 3) Bopinc, as lead non-commercial partner, an expert on BoP marketing and distribution, and 4) Dnet supporting the recruitment and training program for iSocial. A fifth partner, Arbab, was added with the greening component of the project with the objective to reduce sachet waste in last-mile distribution systems.

The partnership achieved three key results:

1. Arla’s business case for affordable nutrition has been proven: Arla currently reaches over 57 million low-income consumers with DDP. This happens largely through the established Sub-D network. Today, the total number of outlets in Sub-D amounts to 45.396 with an average monthly sales of 129.449 kg (Q2 2023) and a monthly average of 2,85 kg per outlet per Month. The model is commercially viable and provides a cornerstone of the new model the partnership tested in 2023.
2. Proof of concept for the financial viability of the direct connection between women entrepreneurs and the Arla distribution network: Though the initial model of sales agents run by independent networks did not work, the partnership ran a pilot program in the final year of the project where 200 female retailers were onboarded. At the end of the pilot 99% were actively selling DDP and increased their incomes increased with 33%, creating a monthly increase of around BDT 4160. Arla continues supplying the 200 female retailers through their Sub-Distributor (Sub-D) network, and a scale-up strategy is to be determined.
3. Waste management model ready to be scaled: Technology for recycling sachets has been introduced within Arbab. Collection channels explored have steadily surpassed the target of 1000 kg waste collected per month (ranges between 1200 and 2000 kg). Three buyers were found for recycled products and negotiations with a growing number of interested off takers are ongoing. Furthermore, a partnership with an architectural firm has been developed to design and products high-quality furniture.

The partnership has published several articles on the project, highlighting results and lessons learned. A blog prepared collaboratively by all project partners titled ‘Fostering last mile distribution to improve nutrition: The success stories of rural women micro-entrepreneurs in Bangladesh’ was published on Bopinc’s official LinkedIn page. In 2023, an article titled “Shifting the narrative for women-led businesses” further championed the project’s cause, delving into the realms of women’s entrepreneurship and last-mile distribution. In 2024, two articles were published on NextBillion: “Women Sales Agents are the Key to Last-Mile Distribution: Here are Four Ways to Maximize Their Impact” and “Trash Talk: Five Lessons for Reducing Plastic Pollution by Establishing Sachet Recycling Loops”.

The Pushti Ambassador Partnership in Bangladesh has attracted widespread attention through local media highlights. These include a pivotal webinar in 2023, where industry experts discussed circular solutions for plastic waste, and an offline event in 2021 that brought together local stakeholders and partners to delve into Women Entrepreneurship.

The pictures below show some of the furniture made from recycled materials, which that was developed through the greening component.