Proximity Designs

Decades of economic and political isolation have left Myanmar’s rural families poorly served by both the public and private sectors.  Although Myanmar’s 30+ million small farmers are the backbone of the country’s economy, most of the technological advances in agriculture from the last century have bypassed them. Farmers also face new challenges such as rising input and labour costs, changing climate and decreasing farm fertility.  Farmers lack access to affordable and appropriate agricultural products, services and finance needed to improve their farm productivity and profitability. A productive agricultural sector is a vital fulcrum to lifting millions of rural families out of poverty.

Over 15 years of operations, Proximity Designs has served over 640,000 farming households, which is close to 2.75 million people.

Proximity’s products include small-plot irrigation products, including micro irrigation systems and pumps, as well as a soil health test and recommendation service.  The organisation offers affordable crop and livestock loans for growing agricultural enterprises as part of Proximity Finance. Their financial service offerings are carefully calibrated to the planting and harvest cycles of small farms.

Their Farm Advisory services supports family farms by delivering “best-fit” practices and tailored agronomy recommendations to farmers throughout the growing season, from seed cleaning to soil health and pest and disease management.

Their in-house design team, Proximity Labs, surveys, iterates and collaborates with leading design organisations, such as Studio D Radiodurans, IDEO.org, and frog design, to make innovative products and services available for small farmers.