Integra International Corporate Capabilities 1030 15th Street NW, Suite 555W, Washington, DC, 20005 Tel (202) 898-4110 www.integrallc.com
Integra is an international development firm with a fresh and modern perspective. We understand that the 21st century presents unique development challenges. Climate change and resource degradation threaten livelihoods now more than ever. Together with rising global consumption and increasingly interconnected financial markets they have made food security a pressing challenge for many developing countries. Free trade and global integration present both opportunities and challenges for economic growth, and advanced technologies offer new possibilities for economic inclusion, business growth, and citizen participation in government. Integra takes a forward thinking and results oriented approach that understands these dynamics and offers clients a reliable partner, one that operates with integrity. By the Numbers About Us 2010 60+ 88 9 The year in which Robert Otto founded Integra LLC in Washington, DC Number of countries in which our principals have development work experience Number of years in which our principals have worked in international development Number of countries in which we operated programs in our first two years www.integrallc.com
T he ICT sector is growing rapidly in many developing countries, and ICTs have shown great potential for improving firm productivity and enabling better social outcomes in health, education, and public governance. In fact, ICTs provide an extraordinary opportunity to extend the reach of development initiatives into all sectors and strata of society. Capturing that potential involves creating the right enabling environment, building human and institutional capacity, and attracting private sector investment and entrepreneurship. Integra takes an ecosystem approach to ICT infrastructure development that deals with strengthening the enabling environment, providing connectivity, facilitating demand for ICT services, and ensuring the creation of valuable ICT enabled services. Information & Communications Technology for Development Strengthening the ICT Enabled Environment Through USAID s Global Broadband and Innovations Program Integra is working with seven developing countries to strengthen ICT governance by building capacity in Universal Service Funds, and in some cases to develop a national broadband strategy that will guide the government s involvement in the ICT sector. These strategies will streamline government processes related to broadband expansion and ensure that private sector operators deal with transparent, predictable regulation. Expanding ICT Infrastructure on the Rural Edge Integra works with mobile network operators (MNOs) and equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to identify low cost technologies that can be used to profitably supply connectivity in very remote areas. We also work with MNOs regulators to construct business models and regulatory regimes that allow for scaling these technologies. This work is conducted under the firm s Connectivity on the Rural Edge (CORE) program. Assessing and Facilitating Demand for ICT Integra conducts assessments of ICT sectors of developing countries at the request of the USAID missions. These assessments include an examination of patterns of demand, the penetration of ICTs, and how the public sector is leveraging these technologies. E-government services are an important part of creating demand for ICT services, and strong demand is crucial for making sure telecommunications networks are large enough to have significant effects on economic development. Integra also works closely with governments and with technology companies to facilitate the expansion of school computing programs that give children ICT skills at a young age.
Integra employs a knowledge-driven, technologically empowered, participatory, and empirical approach to the challenges of managing the environment and natural resources in an economic development context. We place solid analysis backed by evidence ahead of conventional wisdom. Integra brings solid capacity building, organizational development, project management, monitoring, and evaluation skills to its natural resource management efforts. Our experienced staff and its interdisciplinary suite of talented partners provide Integra s clients with fresh perspectives and innovative responses to the world s emerging environment and natural resources challenges. Environment & Natural Resources Management Sustainable Landscapes and Ecosystem Management Effective solutions to complex situations require a multidisciplinary approach. Integra provides its clients with access to a wide range of services from boots on the ground management natural resource management to geospatial remote sensing and social and environmental safeguards. Integra leadership provides the client with a coherent interdisciplinary team focused on the client s goals. Community-based Natural Resource Management Natural resources management and economic development are recursive social problems without perfect solutions, We combine technological leverage and field experience to empower participation and support smart real world decisions, focusing on systems and processes for participatory, iterative approaches to problem solving. Framing the problem effectively harnesses the creativity of the stakeholders and invites them to enter into the process of discovery of credible, relevant and most importantly, sustainable approaches. Biodiversity, Ecosystems, and Knowledge Management Biodiversity, carbon sinks, and other ecosystem goods and services are the product of complex socioeconomic, biological and physical systems. Decisions involve trade-offs, and making good ones require knowledge management. Integra s capabilities in ICT for development and participatory approaches to natural resource management combine with strong partner capabilities in ecoinformatics and decision-support systems to produce a powerful resource to backstop clients in assessing, planning, and monitoring natural resource management options.
T he World s population is expected to increase by 3 billion people between now and 2050, and this 50% increase over current levels will exacerbate an already difficult situation with regard to the world s food supply and the volatility of its price. Agricultural growth and an improved allocation system for the world s food resources will therefore be crucial to maintaining international security and spurring economic growth throughout the 21st century. Integra provides food security and agricultural and rural development solutions in two key areas: value chain analytics and rural information and communications technology solutions. Food Security & Rural Development Value Chain Analysis and Development Rural Information and Technology Solutions Integra s work on agricultural value chains supports national development programs with policy formulation assistance and program implementation capacity designed to grow productive sectors. We have deep experience in using a binding constraints approach to analyze constraints to value chain development, and our principals have recently engaged in such studies in Mali and Zambia, among others. On the implementation side, our specialty is strengthening the service sector links within value chains, to include investment, post harvest handling, business services, market identification and outreach, and transport and logistics. Integra consultants have twenty-five years of experience in agricultural value chain work, and provide clients with invaluable advice and project support. The potential of ICTs and the value-added services they carry offer a huge potential to increase agricultural output and facilitate the movement of food from surplus to deficit areas. As the sole implementer of USAID s only global ICT contract, Global Broadband and Innovations, Integra has a key role in facilitating Missions use of ICT in all parts of the agricultural value chain. We maintain a vast inventory of possible ICT solutions for agriculture, and are able to assist Missions in identifying technology needs and sourcing technology solutions either through networks of local developers, our unique access to Silicon Valley, or from other development organizations involved in similar work. We are currently assisting two Missions in Africa on sharing important information with beneficiary farmers and strengthening their programming under Feed the Future.
D irect support to entrepreneurs, investors, other private sector players, and regulators remains crucial to growth and poverty reduction. Integra s principals and consultants have been engaged in Economic growth activities for thirty years, and have deep experience ranging from privatization of enterprises in the former Soviet Union to export development in Latin America. We specialize in trade and investment promotion and in enterprise development and competitiveness, and our approach is one that works hand in hand with private sector partners to maximize the social benefits of a vibrant business community. Economic Growth Working with the Private Sector Integra has been working hand in hand with private technology companies since the firm s inception. We are currently implementing a series of workshops with the Intel Corporation that aim at improving the operations of Universal Service Funds around the world. Further, we partner with small technology companies and mobile network operators to provide context-appropriate telecommunications infrastructure in remote rural areas. Trade and Investment Promotion Growth is driven not simply by the availability of markets and labor, but through timely and scalable private sector investments in productive capacity, human resources, infrastructure, and management skills. Integra helps to blueprint strategies for growth taking all of these factors into consideration. Our staff and consultants have over thirty years experience leading successful trade and investment promotion program in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and East Asia. Enterprise Development and Competitiveness The strategic situation of developing country Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) has changed dramatically, and the stakes of success or failure have increased sharply. To succeed in this new environment firms need access to finance and investment, strong market linkages, efficient value chains, improved transport and logistics, skilled and tech-savvy workforces, access to innovative networks and of peers, and a legal and regulatory environment that does not prove overly burdensome. Through USAID s GBI IQC Integra is currently helping to facilitate networks of unaffiliated entrepreneurs in the ICT space, and is working with telecoms operators to ensure their policies best promote economic growth.
Integra s team of economists and researchers produce high quality, insightful reports that are useful in supporting development assistance programs. We offer cutting edge methodologies and comprehensive support. We offer a wide variety of analytical services, with specific emphasis on the following: Analytical Services Constraints Analysis Integra is well versed in the Constraints Analysis and Growth Diagnostic methodologies that have recently been used by USAID as part of the Partnership for Growth initiative. Reports based on these methodologies can either be sector-specific or can study an entire economy. They identify the 3-4 most binding constraints to growth in each specific context, and are helpful for targeting limited development resources on the areas where the best results are likely to be obtained. Integra principals and consultants have engaged in Constraints Analysis work in Senegal, Zambia, Ghana, and Mali, among others. Strategy Design Integra can assist Missions and governments with the design of either national or sector-specific assistance and/or development strategies. This type of analysis can be conducted either as a followon to a constraints analysis, in a sense that after constraints have been identified Integra can assist in designing a strategy to confront them, or it can be a stand-alone report. Integra, under the GBI program, is currently involved in assisting a sub-saharan African telecommunications regulator study the authorizing environment for a national broadband policy. This analysis will support their development of a strategy for shepherding their plan through a difficult political process of approval. Knowledge Management The practice of Knowledge Management (KM) has been important in international development since the field came into being in the middle of the 20th century. But Integra offers a new perspective on this old area of work. By incorporating professionally designed web interfaces, dynamic databases, interactive media, and modern communications campaigns Integra ensures that a project s lessons are not just widely shared, but stored in a way that they can be conveniently accessed and used. As part of the Global Broadband and Innovations (GBI) IQC Integra is leading USAID s KM program in the ICT for Development space by creating and managing an agencywide ICT4D platform.
Robert Otto, President botto@integrallc.com 202-898-4110 Eric White, Managing Associate ewhite@integrallc.com 202-898-4110 1030 15th Street NW Suite 555W Washington, DC 20005 202-898-4110 www.integrallc.com Contact Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business DUNS: 961739898 NAICS CODES: 541990, 517919, 519190, 541519, 541611, 541618, 541690, 611430, 611710