Taking appropriate technology to the market; stories of social enterprises

Dissemination and scaling of appropriate technology initiatives in India has had limited success because of poor market analysis and education, a limited focus on local capacity building, and a lack of focus on local business and entrepreneurship models of social innovation solutions (Kammen, 1999:10-15). Development professionals are now looking at social enterprises as vehicles for delivery of sustainable development. A viable and useful technology that will work in a rural setting, has a sustainable financial model, and is environmentally benign gives the Triple Bottom Line. The act of nurturing and supporting enterprises is called 'business incubation'. Successful alumni of the Indian Institutes of Technology have worked to create ecosystems in India similar to that of Silicon Valley. As an outcome IITM established the pioneering Rural Technology and Business Incubator (RTBI). This paper shares results of a study of six enterprises incubated within the RTBI. It examines the role of the RTBI in taking technology solutions to rural markets. It is hoped that understanding and replicating this model can help other AT practitioners in developing countries, to reach out to a larger population and specifically create social impact through the incubation of innovative businesses and technology