GHD Catalytic Impact Fund

Building permanent protection against a $1 trillion crisis

The Challenge

One in three children worldwide suffer from lead poisoning, costing low- and middle-income countries nearly $1 trillion annually in lost economic productivity, yet receiving less than $10M in global philanthropic funding.

Our Catalytic Approach

Rather than treating affected children—an endless and costly approach—we funded LEEP's strategic advocacy to create permanent regulatory infrastructure that prevents exposure at its source.

The Impact

Our $160,000 grant helped LEEP secure government commitments for lead paint regulations in Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone, and Madagascar, with plans to expand to 50 countries. At roughly $250,000 per country potentially affecting 250,000 children, this translates to about $1 per child protected from lead exposure.

The Multiplier Effect

Our early funding crowded in major interest, contributing to USAID and UNICEF announcing a $150M Partnership for a Lead-Free Future in 2024—a nearly 1,000x leverage on our initial investment.

Unlocking economic growth through governance reform

The Challenge

Resource-rich countries often suffer from the "resource curse," where natural wealth fuels corruption and perpetuates poverty instead of creating shared prosperity.

Our Catalytic Approach

Rather than providing temporary economic aid or running traditional anti-corruption campaigns, our $201K grant helps countries build permanent governance infrastructure—transparency standards, accountability mechanisms, and oversight systems.

The Impact

Supporting priority countries like South Africa, Brazil, Rwanda, Chile, Botswana, and Namibia to become and remain EITI members, improving extractive sector governance and increasing GDP. In Nigeria alone, EITI disclosures helped identify $20B in recoverable revenues, with $3B already recovered.

The Multiplier Effect

Quasi-experimental studies show EITI member countries have meaningfully higher GDP increases than comparable non-members, making this one of our most cost-effective opportunities to increase economic growth in LMICs.

Enhancing livelihoods through coordinated funding

The Challenge

Age-related vision impairment prevents workers in visually intensive occupations from remaining productive and earning income.

Our Catalytic Approach

We coordinated $1.56M in total funding by bringing together three donors around a larger funding package, deploying $430K from our Fund to maximize collective impact.

The Impact

Enabled Restoring Vision to screen workers like tailors, weavers, mechanics, carpenters, and farmers for presbyopia and provide corrective reading glasses, significantly boosting productivity and incomes in Nigeria and India.

The Multiplier Effect

By coordinating with other funders rather than acting alone, we multiplied our direct impact by nearly 4x while filling a critical funding gap for livelihood enhancement.