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What We Do
Vista Ventures Social Impact Fund focuses on social entrepreneurs in developing countries and the infrastructure that supports them. Founded by an impact investor with years of experience in sub Saharan Africa, we have seen the successes that can be brought by the combination of entrepreneurial drive, market needs and investor capital. We endeavor to apply those same resources to social entrepreneurs who provide goods and services that help to alleviate poverty or improve the environment in developing countries.
Vista Ventures® services often include advice and training for entrepreneurs regarding the expectations and requirements of various types of investors as they plan their capital attraction strategies. In some cases, we provide specific advice or very small amounts of catalytic capital to bridge the company to a specific milestone usually related to increased sales or raising capital. We help entrepreneurs to understand issues in valuation, to negotiate the terms of the investment and to establish practices of good corporate governance.
For impact investors, we help to sharpen their focus on regions and industries in order to develop realistic expectations of risk and return as well as social impact. We undertake the due diligence on the investment opportunity or certain aspects of the due diligence process and make specific recommendations regarding terms including those that help to protect the investment during the key early years.
The ‘pioneer gap’
In recent years a surge of entrepreneurs has worked towards business solutions to alleviate poverty and environmental deterioration in developing countries. In some cases, poor customers have benefited from products available at a price they can afford. In other situations, suppliers, often small holder farmers, have increased their incomes because social entrepreneurs have provided new opportunities to sell their products. New business models have also enabled retailers and their customers to benefit from an increased availability of goods at affordable prices. Applications of new technologies have opened the door for more efficient payment transactions, faster deliveries and raised the potential of future advances.
Many of these new projects have been financed, at least in part, by a corresponding wave of investment seeking to achieve social or environmental goals as well as a financial return. While sometimes preceded by development funds, impact investing angels (individual investors) as well as impact investing funds have helped to fuel the growth of innovative companies.
But it is not enough. These new companies are often seeking to test new business models that are not sufficiently proven to attract investment capital. Most entrepreneurs utilize capital from “friends and family” before even soliciting investment capital but entrepreneurs in developing countries lack access to those personal resources that are more abundant in developed economies. Just as often, the novelty of the business undertaking or the environment in which it will operate raises barriers that are often difficult to anticipate. All of these types of impediments are often called the “pioneer gap” to reflect the additional difficulties typical of the social entrepreneur.
The solution to the pioneer gap is sometimes called enterprise philanthropy. As practiced by Vista Ventures Social Impact Fund, it entails the provision of a small amount of assistance to solve a critical but small problem that is otherwise a barrier to attracting investment capital for the pioneering social entrepreneur.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES TOWARD
Bridging the Pioneer Gap
Each situation is unique but we employ responses that conform to several principles. Among them are the following:
• The company’s business model, when implemented, is reasonably likely to be sustainable in the long term and will have measurable impact towards the alleviation of poverty and/or the mitigation of the effects of climate change.
• The specific problem to be addressed is concrete and is currently a barrier to either attracting investment capital or scaling the business.
• The remedy for this problem is likely to lead to investment in the near term.
• The remedy is within the resources of Vista Ventures, both in terms of
management capacity and capital.
• The company management agrees with the findings and the plan to move forward without reservation.
BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS
A Portfolio Benefiting the Vulnerable
The following recent projects demonstrate the practices of Vista Ventures Social Impact Fund in its efforts to bridge the “pioneer gap.”
REDUCE HARMFUL COOKING FUMES
Millions of households cook on three stones in poorly ventilated spaces. The result is asthma and other respiratory illnesses particularly among their children. These housesholds cannot even afford the $40 cookstoves that are available in some markets.
Mukuru Clean Stoves in western Kenya seeks to eliminate those health hazards with its simple, rugged one-burner stoves that selll for only $10. With Vista Ventures assistance, the company is expected to triple its 2018 sales in 2019 and be profitable for the first time.
METERED WATER IRRIGATES SMALL FARMS
Most of the world’s poor farmers eke out a living on less than six acres. Climate change has made the availability of water for irrigation even less predictable.
Oorja Development Solutions is implementing a system of solar-powered pumps (replacing diesel) which meter water to individual farmers so they pay for only what they consume. Few can afford their own pump. Vista Ventures is helping to raise capital for Oorja.
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Donate!
Vista Ventures Social Impact Fund, like non-profit organizations everywhere, relies on the generosity of donors for its success. We are a very small and young organization, but we benefit from the extensive experience of our founders. For US taxpayers, we are tax exempt as a public charity under section 501c(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. A copy of the IRS letter designating tax exempt status is available upon request.
There are lots of very good reasons to donate:
a. All 100% of your money will go to services or projects in developing countries. Even the costs of fund-raising are paid from a separate donor.
b. Because we are very small, we rely on volunteer staff for work in developing countries and our administration. As we grow we won’t always be able to do so, but it makes us very cost effective.
c. Your donation is highly leveraged for success. Before spending on a project, we determine that the company is likely to grow its revenues or attract outside capital directly as a result of our involvement.
d. Your donation is also leveraged in another way. Another donor matches 100% of all amounts donated from the public (up to a total of US$50,000).
e. Our projects are also highly sustainable. Because we work with social entrepreneurs who are usually operating for-profit companies, there’s a high probability that the venture will continue long into the future.
f. Donors receive a lot of value for their contribution in purely economic terms. Costs of labor, materials and services are generally lower in developing countries so money donated from North America or Europe simply purchases more goods and services in developing countries.
That’s an impressive list. But the most compelling reason to donate is that we can’t do it without you. So, please donate using the form below and tell others about us.
