IDE has established such market-driven projects for pump and irrigation systems, as well as for coconut processing plants, in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, Zambia, Bangladesh, and Haiti. It does this by performing market studies in countries, then designing a product manufacturing and sales system using local manufacturers and retailers. The technology -- usually pumps and plastic irrigation systems -- must be affordable to the poor and capable of paying for itself within one year.

Occasionally, IDE helps set up a micro-loan program so that rural farmers can quickly purchase and begin using the technology.

The pumps normally retail for $35-$50, which represents about half of many rural farmers' annual income, Polak says. However, the pumps allow the farmers to double their crop production, giving them additional income with which to pay off their loans and increase their buying power.

IDE has helped establish over 115 manufacturers and thousands of distributors, retailers, and installers in the countries where it operates.

In the past, IDE has also sponsored other projects, such as the manufacture of donkey carts in Somalia, jet boats for transportation in Nepal, and nut processing and marketing in Brazil.

It operates with a headquarters staff of nine, based in Lakewood, Colorado, and about 450 employees in field offices scattered around the world. Each country has a Country Director who is usually a United States expatriate. All other staff are natives of those countries, in many cases trainers or trainees who eventually will become independent players in the entrepreneurial enterprises they are helping establish.

More about the:    NEED | SOLUTION | SPECIFICS | FUTURE