Founded in 2001, Villgro Innovations Foundation is India's largest and oldest social enterprise incubator. Over the years, Villgro has supported 109 enterprises, who have gone on to generate around 4,000 jobs, secure INR 1124 million (USD 17.8 million) in follow-on funding and touched 15 million lives. Motivated by their track record, we were inspired to replicate Villgro's incubation model in Kenya. Villgro's programs immerse, inspire, mentor and fund early-stage innovative for-profit enterprises that seek to address some of the world’s most pressing problems using market-based approaches. Their integrated incubation support offers end-to-end support to entrepreneurs in a continuum from idea stage, pre-product, pre-revenue all the way to scale. Set up under the legal entity Kenya Impact Incubator, Villgro Kenya hopes to inspire a new wave of innovative thinking around solving some of the specific challenges within the Kenyan health ecosystem. Incoming entrepreneurs will be coached and immersed in business model best practices while sharpening their innovative ideas. Access to the right networks is vital for the success of any entrepreneurial venture; Villgro Kenya hopes to create opportunities for increased collaboration around a broad stakeholder network. To accomplish this, Villgro Kenya is building partnerships between health professionals with entrepreneurial aspirations, the private sector, NGOs, academic institutions who wish to provide access to market for innovations, and government who appreciate that increased health of citizens is the foundation for greater economic opportunities.
