# Principles of Product Design in Developing Countries
## 1 Introduction
### Process of New Product Development in the Rural DC Context  
The NPD process was not found to have been formalized for application in areas where the focus deviates from marketing and commercialization opportunities, such as providing basic necessity items in a not for profit environment in DC. There is a lack of literature accessing the applicability of the NPD process in DC, or how it might need to be modified. In particular, the commercial, intellectual property (IP) and marketing drivers of NPD in developed countries cannot be assumed consistent with DC, especially in the aid setting. Numerous papers exist on the issues of implementing new technologies into DC contexts [22]. However, the literature pivots around the significance of providing electrical power systems and the problem statements are posed around power supply and power supply reliability [23; 24]. There is little focus on the broader perspective of providing systems that fulfil other basic human needs. In particular, primary community needs such as water supply, food security, and sanitation levels are less well represented in the academic literature. However, this does not mean that nothing is happening. There are many volunteers who are motivated by altruism to commit their personal time and resources to helping others less fortunate than themselves. There are also techno-philanthropists who have put money into uplifting specific communities or solutions to wider health or disease issues. Government agencies too are involved. Many innovative products have been developed too. Some of these are constructions that could be replicated within the community, such as simple mobility aids for the disabled in these communities, apparatus for carrying water or washing clothes, and cooking products. Others are high technology solutions that are useful but could not be constructed by the community itself, such as solar photo voltaic (PV) panels, or nano technology used for purifying water. Some solutions are technical systems, the components of which are themselves commonplace (at least in the developed world), but the complexity arises in the integration. Examples of these complex systems are electrical power generators (especially those involving PV, batteries, and charge conditioners), and PV water pumping. In all cases, whether the technology intervention is motivated by altruistic or commercial reasons, it is necessary to consider how the intervention will be sustained, and this may involve standardization of design to improve replicability (and knowledge transfer, should that be desired), and gaining sufficient deployment and scale so that users are not isolated. Economies of scale would seem to be important, especially where physical and skill resources are sparse. The basic premise of techno-philanthropy is that the application of technological solutions and innovation in products will improve the quality of life of people in developing countries. Even the term 'developing' countries implies that the ideal future condition is technological advancement. However simply transferring technology from the developed world is not necessarily a solution, and technologically well-developed projects can fail when deployed in developing areas. This is because a fabric of infrastructure, materials, knowledge, and skills underpins the success of that technology in the developed country, and this fabric does not necessarily exist to the same extent in the developing case. Thus, products of techno-philanthropy can fail because they cannot be maintained (for lack of materials, parts, or skills), or they are single use and cannot be reconditioned, etc. Some products, especially those oriented towards consumer use or packaging of processed food/beverages, have significant life-cycle considerations that are often overlook. The product may have a short use-phase in its life, and then move to disposal. Developing countries are typically also lacking in waste disposal services.