The Professional Diploma in Market Systems Development (MSD) is your pathway towards becoming a change-maker in development practice. Across Africa, development projects are often well-intentioned yet fall short of creating lasting impact because they focus on symptoms rather than systems. Evidence shows that more than 60 percent of donor-funded projects in Africa fail to sustain results beyond their funding cycles, a challenge that the MSD approach directly addresses. Built on the Making Markets Work for the Poor (M4P) and Inclusive Systems frameworks, MSD equips professionals with the tools to tackle root causes, unlock opportunities, and drive change that continues long after external funding ends.

This program is designed for professionals who want to move beyond project delivery into systems-level transformation. Whether you are a program manager, policy maker, or development practitioner, you will gain the ability to analyze markets, identify systemic constraints, and design interventions that enable businesses, governments, and communities to collaborate for inclusive growth.

In Africa, where more than 80 percent of livelihoods are tied to fragile and often inefficient market systems, the demand for professionals who understand and can apply MSD principles has never been greater. Too many projects fail to embed sustainability into their design, leaving communities dependent rather than empowered. Yet, when MSD principles are applied, results are striking. For example, agriculture-focused MSD interventions have been shown to increase smallholder farmer incomes by up to 40 percent within three years while reducing aid dependency. This diploma bridges the skills gap by equipping you with practical tools, case-based learning, and tested frameworks that allow you to design and implement interventions which achieve lasting impact, scale, and resilience.

By joining this program, you are not only upskilling yourself. You are positioning to shape the future of development programming. You will learn to think like a systems strategist, influence stakeholders, and turn resources into catalysts for transformation, ensuring that markets truly work for the poor and marginalized.

This is your opportunity to become the kind of professional that development projects urgently need, one who can connect ambition with sustainability, resources with resilience, and communities with opportunity.