Fictive SIINC example - SOIL Haiti (case study)

Made available by Roots of Impact (2018)

Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods (SOIL) operate in Haiti and seek to promote dignity, health, and sustainable livelihoods through the transformation of wastes into resources. They generate two lines of revenues through toilet rental to low-income households, and selling on of compost produced from the waste. SOIL are still striving to achieve break-even with both of these processes.

SOIL would like to attract investment to scale their operations. They are convinced that through scaling and securing public service contracts they will achieve profitability, but they are aware that the perceived risk for investors is quite high. After discussions with one of their larger donors, SOIL decide to test a SIINC structure.

A set of relevant outcome metrics (e.g. no. of new households serviced/amount of compost produced) are jointly developed between SOIL and the outcome funder (donor). The local government is invited as an observer in this process, but does not have to make any commitments at this stage. The outcome funder agrees to thus pay SOIL for the positive impact that they generate. These premium payments are triggered by reported outcomes and supplement the projected earnings from SOIL’s activities, greatly improving SOIL’s financial projections. With these improved projections, SOIL are able to secure the investment they need to scale their operation.

After three years, SOIL’s toilet rental business has reached a level of scale whereby it is now financially self-sustaining. Their waste-treatment activity remains loss-making, but based on the track-record established through the SIINC intervention, the local authorities are willing to continue paying incentives to SOIL to treat the waste. SOIL no longer need donations, are able to repay the investment they secured according to the initial planning, and are now growing organically.