October 20, 2019

BPP round three partnerships announced

A customer with her pay-as-you-go solar power solution from a DFAT partnership with Sola PayGo, Bmobile and d.light in Hanuabada, Papua New Guinea. BPP/Sarah Wiles.

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has announced ten new private sector partnerships in the Business Partnerships Platform’s (BPP) third funding round.  The BPP enables businesses to work with DFAT to create a social impact – create jobs, income and empower women – while delivering commercial returns.

The ten new partnerships are expected to benefit one million people and create $120 million in additional savings and income for producers and consumers. The private sector will contribute $5.4 million to scale business opportunities in the clean energy, agriculture and financial inclusion sectors.

The successful partnerships will: 

  • Papua New Guinea support affordable solar solutions for remote households and businesses
  • Solomon Islands establish organic cocoa production
  • Tonga improve farm-to-market logistics for the export of root crops
  • Nepal promote mobile financial access that will enable safer sending of remittances
  • Nepal support microfinance loans for affordable housing
  • Pakistan train women dairy farmers
  • Kenya commodify waste mango seed into additional income for smallholder farmers
  • Kenya expand the range of clean energy appliances to urban households
  • Vietnam increase access to finance and improve financial literacy for urban migrant entrepreneurs
  • Laos support local buffalo breeding

Partnering for impact

Creating shared value in the Pacific

DFAT is partnering with Kokonut Pacific Solomon Islands (KPSI) and World Vision to to increase farmer incomes in the Solomon Islands. The partnership will diversify KPSI’s product offering while working with farmers to increase cocoa yields and quality.

Bob Pollard, Managing Director of KPSI said:

“Kokonut Pacific’s motto is ‘improving village livelihood’. We are excited at the prospect of channelling this passion in new ways through the cocoa project, especially with such strong and committed partners as World Vision and DFAT.”

Read more about the partnerships in the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Papua New Guinea.


Phyllus, a cocoa farmer in Makirqa, Solomon Islands, is part of a BPP partnership to establish organic cocoa farming. 

Since its launch in 2017, the BPP has created 33 partnerships over three funding rounds and one funding window, partnering with 70 businesses, NGOs, and academic institutions.

Learn more about the Business Partnerships Platform’s round three partnerships

Get the latest on partnership opportunities