Acumen Fund

Affordable Drip Irrigation for Small-scale Farmers

Global Easy Water Products works with smallholder farmers to make the most of their fields.

Roughly 100 million smallholder farmers in India live on less than $1 a day and 500 million are part of small farmer families. This represents more than 30% of the world's extreme poor.
Modern irrigation technologies have catered to large farmers with fields of four hectares or larger, with no affordable solution for small farmers.
India is a water-scarce country, accounting for 16% of the world's human population but less than 4% of the world's water resources. The share of water available for agriculture is declining fast and small landholders are the first to be affected by these water shortages.

Building on more than 20 years of innovation, the promoters of GEWP have approached product design by placing smallholder farmers at the core of the design process from the outset, ensuring affordability and applicability.
GEWP's distribution strategy leverages market forces by relying on existing small-scale manufacturers and a network of private local dealers to reach its target customers in rural India.

Recent studies have shown that GEWP's products raise the income of its small-scale farming customers by an average of $400/year. This is done through water savings (30-50%), energy savings (50%) and increased crop yields (30-70%).
In 2003 Acumen Fund invested in GEWP's parent organization, International Development Enterprises - India (IDEI). During the term of Acumen Fund's investment, IDEI sold more than 125,132 units in six Indian states, directly impacting the lives of 650,686 people.
Acumen is the first equity investor in GEWP. Since Acumen’s investment in early 2008, GEWP has reached an additional 35,000 smallholder famers, representing more than 184,000 individuals impacted.