The project seeks to document the gaps and the challenges faced by women-led businesses, as well as the social and financing impact, if any, that various actors are able to create through Gender Lens Investing, i.e. the use of capital to deliver financial returns and improve the lives of women, girls and their communities. A database of women-led and women-focused enterprises across the study countries in East Africa and South Asia will be constructed, and a mixed method approach combining quantitative and qualitative analytical tools used to draw cross-country learning across the two regions. To qualitatively assess the impact of Gender Lens Investing on the lives of women at the bottom of the pyramid, the team will engage directly with the beneficiaries of investing companies. The research findings will inform the design of a gender lens toolkit for adoption by various stakeholders contemplating a gender lens approach in their investment decisions. The toolkit will also be used to train Intellecap's business, operations, programs, and project managers.