Harnesssing innovation to drive meaningful change

Harnessing innovation to
drive meaningful change

Harnesssing innovation to drive meaningful change

Who Are We

CDFI is an innovation and research centre working to secure sustainable livelihoods for rural communities across India by strengthening community-based institutions and expanding access to markets and financing. We work with FPOs, SHGs, PACS and other rural cooperatives to design, test, and scale models that sustainably enhance local livelihoods.
We combine primary research with partnerships across government, private sector, and field organisations to develop and disseminate solutions that build resilient, prosperous and empowered rural communities.
OUR GOAL BY 2030
At least 1 million rural households secured sustainable livelihoods, ensuring a dependable standard of living.
"Previously monitoring the health of expectant mothers was difficult due to the non-availability of timely data, and the data we had was inconsistent since it was collected in papers or in registers.”
- Ramkumar S. Add. Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Dept. Meghalaya
“The name for the app signifies the centrality of mothers in achieving development goals in Health, nutrition and education."
- CM Conrad K. Sangma

Our Impact

Building resilient livelihoods across states and sectors.
MEGHALAYA
₹76.37Cr
paid to 7.46K ASHA’s on time.
3000+
Administrative staff & Mid-Level Health Providers benefitted from end-to-end DBT Payments Portal
3,69,000+
pregnant women registered on Mother app.
uttar
pradesh
34,354
Small & Marginal Farmers have embedded digital payments into agri-business operations across 40 FPOs.
Tamil nadu
₹34.8M
in financial assistance helped women avail timely nutritional care.
102 M+
female SHG Members across 9+ million SHGs empowered, getting financial access for livelihood enhancement.
ACROSS INDIA
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34,354
Small & Marginal Farmers have embedded digital payments into agri-business operations across 40 FPOs.
₹76.37Cr
paid to 7.46K ASHA’s on time.
3000+
Administrative staff & Mid-Level Health Providers benefitted from end-to-end DBT Payments Portal
3,69,000+
pregnant women registered on Mother app.
102 M+
female SHG Members across 9+ million SHGs empowered, getting financial access for livelihood enhancement.
₹34.8M
in financial assistance helped women avail timely nutritional care.
ACROSS INDIA

Awards and Recognitions

We embed digital solutions into public systems to empower lives and communities from the ground up

COVID Tracking System

Increased the survival rate in rural areas by 32%

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COVID Tracking System
COVID Tracking System

More than 96,000 deliveries recorded in the system

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COVID Tracking System
COVID Tracking System

Increased the survival rate in rural areas by 32%

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Featured Work

From research to field, strengthening livelihoods for rural communities across India.
Sustainable Livelihood
PACS Growth Framework

Examined 220+ Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) across 5 states, to map the pulse of rural credit, from the ground up.

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Sustainable Livelihood
MLAMP

Expanding sustainable livelihood opportunities for rural communities across 1,350 villages in all 11 districts of Meghalaya

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Sustainable Livelihood
MegLIFE

Keeping Meghalaya's forests and livelihoods connected across 500 villages and 38,000+ households.

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Sustainable Livelihood
NRLM

Strengthening the financial foundations of 9.4 million+ Self-Help Group members across India, through LokOS core-banking platform built for the SHG ecosystem

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Focus Areas

Building Livelihoods from the Ground Up

Financial Inclusion

Connecting households to formal credit and digital paymentsystems that expand access to finance and support sustainable livelihoods.
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Efficient Service Delivery

Delivering government programs at scale demands precision, coordination, and real-time visibility across villages and millions of beneficiaries.
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Sustainable Livelihoods

Building real-time data systems that help state governmentstrack, manage, and deliver large-scale rural development programs.
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Who We Work With/Our Partners

Stories of change

“The MOTHER App recently helped save the life of a high-risk pregnant woman who had refused institutional delivery.”
— Dr. Tyngshain Sutnga, Medical Officer, Bhoirymbong CHC
“The MOTHER App has made it easier to track and follow up with high-risk pregnant mothers and deliveries through phone calls, and even conduct preparatory counselling for the next visit.”
- Maria Wahlang, ASHA worker, West Khasi Hills, Meghalaya
"The old system for ASHAs was tedious, time consuming and has too many processes which resulted in delay of payments"
— Mission Director, NHM, Ramkumar S.
“The MOTHER App has made it easier to track and follow up with high-risk pregnant mothers and deliveries through phone calls, and even conduct preparatory counselling for the next visit.”
- Maria Wahlang, ASHA worker, West Khasi Hills, Meghalaya

Insights & stories