Decades of private sector partnerships generate lasting impact for communities

Private sector success and community well-being aren't competing priorities—they're mutually reinforcing. When communities are stable and thriving, businesses gain stronger markets, more resilient supply chains, and reliable workforces. Transparent, community-centered systems reduce risk and protect long-term investments.

Since the start of the 21st century, recognition of the private sector’s importance to global development has grown exponentially. Governments, multilateral institutions, and NGOs have increasingly turned to the private sector for its innovation, resources, and technical expertise to address global development challenges. Today, private sector partners contribute not only financial resources, but forward-looking solutions and talent that accelerate progress toward global goals.

Across five decades and more than 60 countries, Pact has partnered with national and multinational companies to create social impact that matters—to communities, companies, and entire sectors. These partnerships strengthen supply chains, expand economic opportunity, and build resilience in places where businesses operate. What unites these partnerships is a shared commitment to long-term impact that goes beyond traditional corporate social responsibility.

From critical mineral supply chains to clean energy access, our work demonstrates a central truth: When communities thrive, businesses succeed.

The highlights below show how Pact and private sector leaders are expanding capabilities, strengthening systems, and delivering returns long after initial investments.

Investing in children’s futures

According to UNICEF’s latest State of the World’s Children report, every day, hundreds of millions of children around the world continue to face extreme monetary poverty and severe deprivation, which directly affect a society’s long-term prosperity.

For more than 20 years, Pact has collaborated with private sector partners in Africa to ensure children and youth have the support, opportunities, and skills they need to thrive. 

In Madagascar, Pact partnered with Rio Tinto to improve access to quality education and employment for youth in the Anosy region. Working alongside local government and public and private schools, the partnership improved the quality of and access to education for communities living near mining sites. 

Together, we provided more than 5,000 educational scholarships to middle school, high school, and university students. More than 9,000 students participated in free tutoring, nearly 900 participated in university job fairs, and another 900 completed leadership and civic education programs. These achievements strengthened youth employment prospects and contributed to a more capable local workforce for Rio Tinto and other companies in the region. 

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pact has partnered with companies across the mineral supply chain to stop child labor in artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Since 2015, we have connected 1,000 adolescents to apprenticeships in trades such as tailoring, mechanics, welding, and more. More than 95% graduated and left the mines. 

Through community outreach, more than 450,000 community members have learned about the risks of child labor. We trained 80 mining companies and cooperatives in responsible sourcing and helped strengthen household financial security through 110 community-based savings groups, where more than 2,600 members saved a combined $685,000. As a result, families participating in these groups saw a reduction in child labor from 94.6% to 4%.

With support from Boeing, Qualcomm, Responsible Business Alliance Foundation, Trafigura Foundation, Microsoft, Google, 3M, London Metal Exchange, and more, we’ve shown that integrated, evidence-based, and community-centered approaches can end child labor in mining.

Expanding energy access and strengthening livelihoods

Globally, more than 1 billion people lack access to energy. Energy scarcity negatively affects health, livelihoods, and the environment.

Pact works with governments, companies, investors, and local communities to advance clean, reliable solutions that are safer and more affordable than alternatives like diesel or kerosene.

Launched in 2018, Pact’s Smart Power Myanmar project helps businesses transition to solar power by guiding them through the entire process, from technical assessments and financial planning to securing loans and installing systems. To date, the project has mobilized $34 million in financing, enabling more than 70,000 last-mile connections, and improved livelihood opportunities for more than 370,000 people. Since 2023 alone, the project has reached 12 megawatts of installed power for over 200 businesses.

In Indonesia, Pact partnered with Chevron to help communities tap the economic and environmental benefits mangrove conversation, including through renewable energy use along the shrimp value chain. In the remote village of Tabalar Muara, where people previously relied on only five hours of diesel-generated electricity per day, Pact helped design, procure, and install a 5 kWp rooftop solar system. The new system produces 22kWh per day—tripling the village’s energy production output. Excess energy now powers streetlights and public spaces, enhancing safety, economic activity, and community cohesion.

Strengthening global supply chains

Businesses play a critical role in ensuring responsible, sustainable supply chains. 

Through USAID Green Invest Asia, Pact worked with agriculture and forestry businesses in Southeast Asia to improve environmental sustainability, reduce barriers to investment, and connect companies with investors committed to responsible growth. One initiative resulted in the development of the global Sustainable Coconut Charter, initially signed by AAK, Barry Callebaut, FrieslandCampina, Harmless Harvest Thailand, Nestlé, and Unilever. The Charter aims to improve farmer livelihoods, reduce carbon footprints, and boost supply to meet rising global demand. The Charter was an important milestone on the way to improving coconut cultivation and farmer livelihoods for the growing industry.

In the jewelry sector, Pact has connected women artisanal gemstone miners with other stakeholders in the jewelry supply chain to build the industry’s first scalable, responsible sourcing model for colored gemstones. Since launching in Tanzania in 2019, the Moyo Gems program has expanded to Kenya and supported hundreds of miners—mostly women—to work safely, improve their mining practices, and grow their financial security, all while accessing fair, reliable markets.

Conclusion

These examples represent only a fraction of how Pact partners with the private sector to create impact that lasts—strengthening communities, stabilizing supply chains, expanding access to energy, and building economic opportunity. But today’s global landscape calls for even more.

With rapid technological change, rising climate pressures, growing inequality, and increasingly complex supply chain risks, the private sector is uniquely positioned to drive sustainable, systemic change. Companies have the innovation, scale, and influence necessary for change, while communities hold the local knowledge and expertise needed to make that change last. With trusted relationships on both sides, Pact brings these strengths together to accelerate progress. 

Together, we can build more sustainable, resilient systems that enable businesses and communities to thrive long after any single project ends.