Introduction

Making markets work for the poor (M4P) is a practical approach to reducing poverty, grounded in best practice and guided by four underlying principles:

01Systemic action

M4P focuses on systemic action: understanding where market systems are failing to serve the needs of the poor, and acting to correct those failings.

02Sustainable change

M4P seeks sustainable change from the outset: delivering sustainable outcomes by better aligning key market functions and players with the incentives and capacity to work more effect...

03Large-scale impact

M4P pursues large- scale impact: targeting intervention that benefits large numbers of poor people

04Facilitative role

M4P adopts a facilitative role: determining a catalytic purpose for the development agent that stimulates, but does not displace, market functions or players.