HERD International

What HERD International does

HERD International is a Nepal-based research and development agency, headquartered in Lalitpur with 72 employees, that generates and applies evidence to improve health and well-being in Nepal and comparable fragile settings. Its core offering is applied health-systems research, spanning implementation science, formative and participatory action research, mixed-method studies, surveys, and technical assistance to government and academic partners. The organisation is differentiated by a methodological toolkit that includes Critical Systems Thinking, Soft Systems Methodology, Community Dialogue Approaches, Participatory Video, Group Model Building, and the development of Urban Health Data Hubs to support municipal evidence-based policymaking across Nepal's 753 municipalities.

HERD International runs a project-based, grant-funded business model rather than a commercial one. It does not sell products or services for revenue; instead it secures multi-year research and capacity-building contracts from international development funders, primarily UK International Development through the British Embassy Kathmandu, Wellcome, WHO's Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, the Darwin Initiative, and consortium-led programmes such as ReBUILD for Resilience, CHORUS, REACT, and COSTAR. Its primary customers are Nepal's federal, provincial, and municipal health authorities, alongside international research consortia and academic institutions spanning Bangladesh, Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Lebanon, Myanmar, and Sierra Leone.

Commercially, HERD operates as a single service line — research and development services — distributed through direct partnerships with the Ministry of Health and Population, provincial directorates, and local governments such as Pokhara Metropolitan City, Budhanilkantha, Kapilvastu, and Suddhodhan Rural Municipality. Income flows almost entirely from project grants and consortium sub-awards, with no disclosed pricing, no SaaS or licensing revenue, and no subsidiaries. The organisation is privately held and led by Managing Director Dr. Sushil Chandra Baral, structured into Systems Policy and Programme; Research, Innovation and Development; and Strategy, Partnership and Business departments.

Name

HERD International

Legal name

HERD International

Website

https://herdint.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

HERD International is a Nepal-based research and development agency that conducts health systems research and implementation science, serving government health authorities, municipalities, and international research consortia through grant-funded multi-country projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Lalitpur

HQ country

Nepal

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

HERD International is a research and development agency that generates and utilizes evidence to improve the health and well-being of people in Nepal and comparable settings. The organization conducts health systems research, implementation science, mixed-method studies, formative research, surveys, qualitative studies, and provides technical assistance and capacity building to government health authorities, municipal governments, and international research consortia across thematic areas including antimicrobial resistance, health system strengthening, non-communicable diseases, nutrition, maternal and child health, climate change and health, and urban health.

Product overview

HERD International is a research and development agency that operates as a single unified service offering rather than a software product platform. The organization provides research services across multiple health thematic areas including health systems, antimicrobial resistance, non-communicable diseases, nutrition, maternal and child health, and climate change. Their portfolio includes participatory research approaches, implementation research, mixed-method studies, surveys, and technical assistance to government and institutional partners. Key project-based offerings include CHORUS (urban health systems), ReBUILD for Resilience (R4R), COSTAR and CARAN (antimicrobial resistance), PITCH (climate and health policy), and REACT (climate and health workforce).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Research and Development Services Integrated research and development services focused on generating and utilizing evidence to improve health and well-being. Includes implementation research, health system strengthening, mixed-method studies, formative research, surveys, qualitative studies, and technical assistance delivered across thematic areas such as antimicrobial resistance, health systems, non-communicable diseases, nutrition, maternal and child health, climate change and health, and urban health. Audience includes government health authorities, municipal governments, and international research consortia.

Quantifiable outcome

• Improved health system resilience indicators in Kapilvastu municipality through participatory action research
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

20 partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Darwin InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026UK-based funding initiative supporting biodiversity and conservation projects. Partner in the Darwin Initiative Extra: Nepal Pollination Project focusing on upscaling pollination to enhance biodiversity and human welfare.
• International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional intergovernmental research organization focusing on mountain ecosystems and sustainable development in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region.
• Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNepal's agricultural university collaborating on food security, nutrition, and agricultural research initiatives.
• The Asian Collective for Health Systems (TACHS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional collective focused on health systems research and strengthening across Asian countries.
• Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (WHO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWHO-hosted partnership supporting health policy and systems research globally, collaborating on PITCH initiative for climate and health policy integration.
• LVCT Health – KenyamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKenyan health organization working on HIV, health systems, and community health programs, collaborating on cross-country health research.
• University of Health and Allied Sciences – GhanamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGhanaian university focused on health sciences education and research, partner in CHORUS consortium for urban health systems.
• Institute of Policy Studies of Sri LankamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSri Lankan policy research institute working on health policy and development issues in South Asia.
• Centre for Health Innovation and Policy Foundation (CHIP)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndian health policy research organization focusing on health innovation and policy development.
• ARK FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBangladesh-based research organization, lead partner in COSTAR consortium for community-led AMR solutions, collaborating on participatory video and community engagement approaches.
• CVASU (Chittagong Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences University)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBangladesh university contributing One Health expertise to COSTAR AMR research project.
• Malaria ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational NGO specializing in malaria control and community health, partner in COSTAR AMR project.
• University of Western AustraliamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAustralian university collaborating on AMR research and community engagement methodologies.
• University of LiverpoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK university home to Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, key partner in COSTAR, GEAR UP, and REACT consortia for health systems and AMR research.
• Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead partner in REACT consortium for climate change and health workforce research, providing technical leadership for four-year study in Nepal and Zimbabwe.
• Centre for Sexual Health, HIV, and AIDS Research (CeSHHAR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZimbabwe-based research organization, REACT consortium partner implementing climate-health research alongside HERD International in Nepal.
• Karuna Foundation NepalmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNepal-based foundation focusing on disability and health, collaborated on Breaking Barriers policy dialogue for sexual and reproductive rights of persons with disabilities.
• BRAC JPG School of Public HealthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBangladesh public health school, CHORUS consortium partner, contributing to South Asia Regional Writing Workshop for early-career researchers.
• University of YorkmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK university participating in CHORUS consortium and South Asia Regional Writing Workshop for research capacity building.
• University of LeedscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK university leading School AMR project and CE4AMR network, collaborating on participatory arts methodologies for AMR education in Nepal.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• George Institute for Global Health: Global health systems and policy research organization with offices across Asia, Australia, and Europe, conducting implementation research and engaging government health authorities. Highly comparable in the health systems research, NCD, and policy translation domains where HERD also operates.
• Population Council: International NGO conducting biomedical and social science research on sexual and reproductive health, HIV, and gender — areas overlapping with HERD's SRH and gender equality thematic work. Comparable grant-funded model and consortium participation patterns.
• African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC): Nairobi-based African health and population research organization operating across multiple African countries with implementation research, policy engagement, and capacity-building mandates. Closely comparable in mission, multi-country consortium participation, and donor-funded model.
• icddr,b: International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh — a South Asia-based health research organization conducting implementation and policy research with LMIC government partners. Highly comparable in thematic areas (AMR, NCDs, climate-health), grant-funded model, and consortium-based delivery, though significantly larger in scale.
• LVCT Health: Kenyan health organization working on HIV, health systems, and community health — an explicit HERD consortium partner. Comparable in size, mission, and grant-funded community-health implementation model.
• ARK Foundation: Bangladesh-based research organization that is HERD's lead partner in the COSTAR AMR consortium. Directly comparable in size, mission, grant-funded model, and AMR/community-led research focus.
• Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS): Sri Lankan policy research institute and explicit HERD partner working on South Asian health policy and development issues. Comparable as a South Asia-based, grant-funded policy research organization engaging government stakeholders.
• BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health: BRAC University school of public health and an active HERD consortium partner in CHORUS. Comparable as a South Asia-based institution conducting implementation research on urban health, NCDs, and health systems with community engagement methods.

Broad incumbents

• KEMRI (Kenya Medical Research Institute): State-backed national health research institute in Kenya with much larger scale and a broader biomedical mandate. Comparable as a multi-country LMIC health research institution but considerably more established and resource-rich than HERD.
• Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM): Lead partner in HERD-affiliated consortia REACT and others; a much larger UK academic institution with global health research programs. Comparable thematically but operates as a lead academic partner rather than a country-embedded implementing NGO.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC_nImOn2SCYBdNWQDf0aTKw
• Facebookfacebook.com/HERDIntl
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/herd-international

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HERD International