Organisations of all sorts aim to become sustainable and profitable, but some end up doing unscrupulous activities in the process. But sustainability and improving lives can certainly go hand in hand; such is the model of social enterprises.

Recently, there has been a flurry of social enterprises in Bangladesh's startup scene. To foster social startups, British Council in partnership with ChangeMaker launched Innovate, Incubate & Grow (IIG).

IIG invited teams from all over Bangladesh to submit their startup ideas. 171 youths from across the country participated with 57 innovative social enterprise ideas in the competition. 10 teams were selected after careful scrutiny to attend the Boot Camp where they further groomed and developed their ideas. All this led up to 5 of the most promising teams being selected for the Business Planning Workshop.

The final presentation took place at the Demo Day on March 29 at The British Council Dhaka. The 5 teams presented their ideas in front of a wide audience consisting of mentors, experts, and leaders from various fields. Each presentation was followed by feedback and advice from the relevant members of the audience. There were also opportunities for training and funding up for grabs. Let's take a look at the finalists.

Happy Organic House

Happy Organic House aims to address human health and the environmental hazards that transpire from indiscriminate use of chemical fertiliser, pesticides, and other toxic inorganic elements in crop production. In the startup stage, this team plans to organise 100 farmers in 10 community-based organisations and provide them with technical know-how about producing organic fertilisers and pesticides and vegetable farming.

Shonjibon

Shonjibon plans to provide livelihood for unemployed adult family members of tea garden workers in the Sylhet region. These households are completely dependent upon the income of the tea garden workers, whose daily incomes are below than USD 1. Many adults are unemployed due to the absence of job opportunities outside the garden work. Shonjibon aims to organise these workers to produce paper and cloth bags. Profits will be re-invested for community development.

POKA

In Bangladesh, children below five face the greatest risk from eating unsafe food. On the other hand, farmers are being deprived of the just price for their products due to the non-activation of government policies related to processing, storage & preservation, improvement of transportation system of agricultural product, market-related information services, export of agricultural products, agricultural price commission, etc. POKA will work with marginalised families to produce safe vegetables and establish market linkages with sustainable customers.

Bondhon

This is a daycare complex for the elderly and the young children. Bringing the elderly and the younger generation together under the same roof will enable them to interact with each other, and share stories and experiences. Bondhon's prime concern is ensuring their members feel as happy as they would in their homes. Their childcare is focused on early child development and care for the elderly is focused on 'helping yourself'.

Green Fighter

As the second least liveable city, there is no space for greenery in Dhaka. Children and senior citizens do not have enough open space for recreation. This team plans to design rooftops for buildings, making them aesthetically pleasing while allowing them to cultivate premium flowers and vegetables. The garden will have a children's corner, amenities for relaxation, lights, music, shade, small fountains, etc. Green Fighter aims to use hydroponic technology and vertical cultivation to achieve their goals.

The writer is a sophomore at the Institute of Business Administration, University of Dhaka.