Business development services – core principles and future challenges

Business development services (BDS) have not been subject to the same degree of comprehensive, systematic analysis as microfinance, a fact now recognized by many development agencies. Although there are difficulties in defining precisely what is meant by 'good practice' in BDS, examination of the experience of BDS donors and practitioners suggests that there are a number of core principles which underpin the current state of the art of BDS. These form a general framework to guide interventions. However, there remain many unresolved questions in BDS. Future priorities for action should seek to answer these questions, focusing in particular on more rigorous assessment of current practices, the development of benchmarks of performance and greater innovation.