We reviewed over 200 businesses worldwide*, and have identified over 165 businesses operating in the care economy across Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia who met the following 4 criteria: 
1. Geography focus: operating in project target countries.
2. Care economy impact: business activities recognize, reduce, reward or redistribute care work.
3. Proof of concept: care economy activities at least at the launch stage (none of the businesses are at concept stage).
4. Market-based intervention: already or planning to be financially profitable or to generate income in the medium term.

Out of the mapping we selected 60 businesses to conduct a full profile and showcase potential investment opportunities. These profiles have been created from information and data provided by the business itself. Use the filter on the left to access the businesses profiled.

* Disclaimer: The data presented in the business mapping and profiles is based on information provided by the businesses and has not been independently verified

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42 listing found

Kidogo

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Kidogo is a non-profit social enterprise that improves access to high-quality, affordable early childhood care & education in Kenya’s low-income communities. Kidogo supports women entrepreneurs to initiate or improve the quality of their own, community-based childcare micro-businesses. Kidogo reduces care work as parents have access to quality childcare service at the centres. 82% of Kidogo kids hit developmental goals. Kidogo kids receive health and nutrition interventions, that have also led to a 41% reduction in stunting.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5)
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Recognize, Reward, Redistribute

Komodo Water

Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Indonesia
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 51% women-owned, At least 30% of women in senior leadership
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Komodo is a for-profit entity that provides clean and affordable drinking water in villages of Indonesia. The entity’s services reduces the time spent on collecting clean water in rural regions.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable time and labour saving technology and products
Pathway to impact: Redistribute, Reduce

Koola Waters

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
About the organization: Koola Water is a for-profit company that focuses on manufacturing, distribution, treatment and packaging of pure drinking water in Kenya. Its products reduce the time spent by women to obtain clean drinking water in rural areas of Kenya.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Domestic services, Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable time and labour saving technology and products
Pathway to impact: Reduce

LivelyHoods Kenya

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions, At least 30% of women in board of directors
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Livelyhoods Kenya is a non-profit social enterprise that provides last-mile distribution of essential items in slum communities of Kenya. Livelyhoods Kenya trains women who work as sales agents in the community. Through its intervention, Livelyhoods has enabled women to purchase products that have reduced their care work, including cookstove and solar lights. Adoption of these products has reduced household expenditures and drudgery for women.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Domestic services, Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Reduce, Reward

Lovecare

Website: lovecare.id
Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Indonesia
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Lovecare is for-profit entity that provides child and elderly care services in Vietnam through a care matching and reservation system that connects families and caregivers. It increases access to work for caregivers, thus rewarding their efforts. The services also increases access to quality of care service for families, which reduces time spent on care work.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: “Care for people with illnesses, Child-care (Ages 1 to 5)
Child-care (Ages 6 and above)
Elderly-care (Ages 60 and above)”
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Redistribute

Moner Bondhu

Headquarters: Bangladesh

Country of Operations: Bangladesh
Women owned / led: Information not available
About the organization: Moner Bondhu is a platform to provide care for mental health and well-being service in Bangladesh. Moner Bondhu provides care services through accessible, affordable, convenient professional counselling. It draws recognition to the mental health issues faced by people.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Care for people with illnesses
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Reduce

MyNurz

Website: mynurz.com
Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Indonesia, Thailand
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
About the organization: MyNurz is a for-profit company that provides home care health services in Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand. Its services consist of non-hospital care, care training and advisory services, through provision of nurses (specialist and general, practical nurse, nurse aides), physical, occupational and speech therapists. It reduces the care work undertaken by households through provision of home care providers. The company has completed over 40,000 caregiving sessions.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: “Elderly-care (Ages 60 and above)
Care for persons with special needs (disabled / differently abled persons)
Care for people with illnesses”
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Reduce

Nazava Water Filters

Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions, At least 30% of women in board of directors
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Nazava is a for-profit enterprise that produces affordable gravity based ceramic household water filters, replacing the need to boil water on wood or LPG. It reduces care work as women save 139 hours per year on boiling and collecting fuel using the water filters. Nazava purified water is 3 times cheaper than boiling and 9 times cheaper than buying water from refill-kiosks.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable time and labour saving technology and products
Pathway to impact: Reduce

Nursing Homecare BD

Headquarters: Bangladesh

Country of Operations: Bangladesh
Women owned / led: Information not available
About the organization: Nursing Homecare BD is a for-profit company that provides home care and nursing services in Bangladesh. It provides home care services for patients and elderly that need assistance for their daily needs. Its services include connecting mothers with nurses to give proper care and support to the newly born babies and infants at home. The company’s services redistribute and reduce care and domestic work within the household.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Child-care (Ages 1 to 5) Child-care (Ages 6 and above) Elderly-care (Ages 60 and above) Care for persons with special needs (disabled / differently abled persons) Care for people with illnesses
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers (e.g. technology that links employers to domestic/care workers)
Pathway to impact: Redistribute

Phulki

Headquarters: Bangladesh

Country of Operations: Bangladesh
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 51% owned by women, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions, At least 30% of women in board of directors
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Phulki is the pioneer in establishing early childhood development programs in Bangladesh. Phulki provides various training on health issues, woman rights, and vocational trainings such as caregiver training, supervision training and others, to increase women’s financial stability. It has setup childcare facilities in the workplace for women that are employed in garment factories in Bangladesh. Phulki also works with domestic house helpers building their capacity.
Stage of Growth: Established/Mature
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5), Child-care (Ages 6 and above), Domestic services, Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Reduce, Redistribute

Prime Indonesia

Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Zambia, Cambodia, Papua New Guinea
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
About the organization: Prime Indonesia is a for-profit enterprise that produces and distributes energy-saving biomass stoves. The company serves poor people in Indonesia by providing cheaper cook stoves. It reduces the amount of time spent by women in cooking and wood collection, and saves households from spending on refilling LPG or Kerosene. In addition, prime stoves are also healthy and energy-efficient products, reducing maternal and child mortality due to smoke when cooking using traditional stoves.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Domestic services
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology, services & policies/practice that improve conditions for domestic & care worker
Pathway to impact: Reduce

PT Insan Medika Persada

Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Indonesia
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
About the organization: Insan Medika is a for-profit enterprise that provides healthcare services for elderly and unwell patients in Indonesia, through professionally trained caregivers. Insan Medika focuses on increasing the skills of caregivers through its academy. By doing so, the company is rewarding caregivers through increased opportunities, better work conditions and increased income.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5), Child-care (Ages 6 and above), Elderly-care (Ages 60 and above), Care for persons with special needs (disabled / differently abled persons), Care for people with illnesses
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Recognize, Reward, Redistribute

Strong Start

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 51% owned by women, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions, At least 30% of women in board of directors
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Strong Start is a for-profit company that provides caregivers and domestic staff in Kenya with technical skills training in early childhood development, household management, self advocacy and job search training. It connects with caregivers and domestic staff through community micropods and blended trainings to support them in advancing their technical and advocacy skills at their workplaces. The enterprise has trained 144 caregivers via live blended trainings and worked with 634 caregivers in micropod & playgroup programs. The company’s services not only reduce the burden of care work but also upskill caregivers and domestic workers.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5), Domestic services
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Recognize, Reward

The Mother Goose Kenya

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 51% owned by women, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: The Mother Goose Kenya is a community-based organization (CBO) that focuses on helping communities improve the quality of child-care focusing on the following themes: empowering women and parents, parenting solutions and quality childcare solutions. The entity’s services reduce the burden of unpaid care work families through provision of domestic workers. Furthermore, the entity also empowers domestic workers by providing trainings and placements.
Stage of Growth: Established/Mature
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5), Child-care (Ages 6 and above), Domestic services
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Recognize, Redistribute, Redistribute, Reward

Through My Eyes

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman, At least 30% women in senior leadership positions
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Through My Eyes is a social enterprise that trains and accredits caregivers to serve children with special needs. Once caregivers have been contracted, they go through daily inspections to ensure they are presentable and in the most positive state of mind. The trainings are categorized according to the diagnosis and the specific needs of the children. Through My Eyes rewards the accredited caregivers with better placement opportunities on mastering the art of caregiving. The enterprise’s services reduce the burden of care work and improve skills of caregivers.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Care for persons with special needs (disabled / differently abled persons)
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Reduce

Tiny Totos Kenya

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya, Rwanda
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Tiny Totos is a social enterprise that aims improve informal daycare by partnering with private, informal daycare entrepreneurs and delivering training and investment to upgrade standards, foster business sustainability and deliver improved care to children in Kenya and Rwanda. The enterprise redistributes care work by providing training and content on how to run profitable childcare businesses, create user-friendly childcare content that ensures child, health, development and nutrition is upheld.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5)
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Reduce

TukangBersih

Headquarters: Indonesia

Country of Operations: Indonesia
Women owned / led: Founded by at least one woman
About the organization: TukangBersih is a for-profit company in Indonesia. It connects customers to trusted cleaners through an online platform. The company’s services reduce the time spent on domestic work by households.
Stage of Growth: Mass roll-out/Expansion
Types of Services: Domestic services
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology & services that train/upskill domestic & care workers
Pathway to impact: Reduce

USAFI GREEN ENERGY LIMITED

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: At least 51% owned by women
For more information, download the full
business profile here

 
About the organization: Usafi Green Energy Limited is a for-profit company that manufactures and distributes cookstoves and biomass briquettes in Kenya. Usafi briquettes are of high carolific value and high heat content therefore make it more viable for household, industrial and institutional use as a fuel. It reduces care work by saving cost and energy. Through the use of the enterprise’s renewable energy products 3 out of 10 trees have been saved and over 4200 households are using the product.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Labour saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable time and labour saving technology and products
Pathway to impact: Reduce

Uthabiti Africa

Headquarters: Kenya

Country of Operations: Kenya
Women owned / led: At least 30% women in senior leadership positions, At least 30% of women in board of directors
For more information, download the full
business profile here

About the organization: Uthabiti is a for-profit entity that exists to accelerate early childhood care, education and development (ECCED) in Africa. It accelerates access to quality and affordable childcare services for all. The organization redistributes care and domestic work by coordinate collaboration among childcare actors, facilitates organizing of childcare entrepreneurs and service providers; as well as influences creation of an enabling policy environment that supports child care enterprises and the childcare workforce to thrive. In 2021, the entity has also set up a non-profit entity.
Stage of Growth: Small scale roll-out/Early stage
Types of Services: Infant-care (children younger than 1-year), Child-care (Ages 1 to 5)
Activities in the care economy: Provision of technology, services & policies/practice that improve conditions for domestic & care worker
Pathway to impact: Recognize, Reward, Redistribute

Washly BD

Website: washlybd.com
Headquarters: Bangladesh

Country of Operations: Bangladesh
Women owned / led: None
About the organization: Washly BD is a for-profit entity that provides laundry services to urban households in Bangladesh. Customers can use online platform or the app to request for laundry pick-ups that are delivered within 24 hours. Washly BD’s services reduce the burden of washing, drying and ironing clothes, bulk of which is undertaken by women.
Stage of Growth: Launch/Pilot
Types of Services: Domestic services, Labor saving solutions
Activities in the care economy: Provision of affordable services that provide care & domestic work
Pathway to impact: Reduce