India is racing to meet its development goals, from improving healthcare and education to tackling climate change and rural poverty. But traditional paths of government schemes, philanthropy, and CSR grants can’t carry the load alone. What we need now is a more creative, collaborative approach to financing social change. One promising path forward? Blended models that bring together the heart of non-profits with the muscle of business.
Think of it as a partnership: social organisations that understand grassroots need working hand-in-hand with enterprises that know how to scale solutions. NGOs bring trust, deep community presence, and a sharp focus on impact. Businesses offer efficiency, investment, and the ability to grow. Together, they can do far more than either could alone.
Let’s take a real example. In central India, grassroots farmer groups are using seed funding from a philanthropic partner to run small, self-managed revolving funds. They use this capital to grow their enterprises, supported by a non-profit that trains and mentors them. Once they’re strong enough, a social enterprise steps in to help formalise their businesses, connect them to markets, and unlock larger loans. Each player has a clear role, but they all move toward the same goal: making smallholder farmers economically self-reliant.
In 2024, 360 ONE Foundation funded a project with Saral Jeevan India Foundation (SJIF) to uplift 2,000 informal small women-led businesses in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Using returnable grants as a catalytic instrument, the initiative aimed to build their creditworthiness through digital credit footprints. It brought together SJIF, a CSR-compliant non-profit, and Frontier Markets (FM), a for-profit social enterprise. SJIF led on-ground impact through training and grant tracking, leveraging its deep community trust. FM provided the Meri Saheli App platform and managed commercial operations and vendor partnerships. This unique blend of social insight and business capability helped ensure both scale and sustainability, empowering women entrepreneurs meaningfully.
Walking the Tightrope
These kinds of “hybrid” collaborations—where a non-profit and a for-profit work side by side—are gaining traction across sectors. Cleanre especially powerful in areas like health, education, clean energy, and sustainable agriculture, where social impact and financial viability can reinforce each other.
But hybrid models come with their own set of challenges.
First, they require a strong ethical compass. Without clear boundaries and shared values, it’s easy for business priorities to overshadow the social mission. Trust is the currency here—and losing it can derail even the best intentions.
Second, transparency is non-negotiable. Organisations must be upfront about who does what, how money flows, and what impact is being achieved. That means clear roles, independent oversight, and open communication with partners, funders, and communities.
Third, we need to simplify the path for those building these models. Today, many social organisations are held back by complex rules and legal grey areas. We need better support structures—legal advice, capacity building, and smarter financing tools—to help them thrive.
The good news is that the trend is growing. Between 2010 and 2022, India attracted $5.6 billion in blended finance, according to Convergence. But money is just one piece of the puzzle. What we truly need is a mindset shift—from working in silos to designing systems that bring together the best of all sectors.
A Call for Collaborative Action
Ultimately, this is not about replacing philanthropy or profit—it’s about moving beyond that binary. India’s challenges are too complex for one-size-fits-all solutions. If we want to build lasting change at scale, we need to get comfortable working in the messy, creative middle: where compassion meets capital, and purpose meets pragmatism.
That’s the promise of hybrid models. Let’s make them work—for all of us.
Views of the author are personal and do not necessarily represent the website’s views.
Author of the above article Mateti Aman is an Investment Officer at Catalyst Management Services, with close to seven years of overall experience spanning both corporate and primarily social development roles. A graduate of the Indian School of Development Management, he focuses on blended finance, designing and managing programs in agriculture, financial inclusion, and entrepreneurship. He has worked with instruments such as revolving grants, pay-for-performance models and credit guarantees, alongside hands-on management and execution of livelihood and financial inclusion initiatives on the ground.