We
envision the day when everyone
in the world
can take a safe drink of water.
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| WaterPartners
International is a U.S.-based
nonprofit organization committed
to providing safe drinking water
and sanitation to people in developing
countries. Working in partnership
with donors and local communities,
we have helped thousands of people
develop accessible, sustainable,
community-level water supplies.
Apart from traditional grant funds
programs, WaterPartners pioneers
in connecting microfinance with
water and sanitation. |
| WaterPartners
has recognized the ability of
poor people to help pay for their
own water projects since WaterPartners
supported its first water project
in 1990 in Honduras. The communities
we help already pay a portion
of the capital cost of a water
system, usually up front. With
WaterCredit, communities may choose
to spread that payment out over
time through a loan. WaterCredit
will also allow WaterPartners
to help communities who can afford
to pay the entire amount of their
project’s cost over time
but not as one lump sum before
construction begins. |
| First,
WaterPartners has done its homework
– in Kenya, India and Bangladesh,
we convened meetings with groups
ranging from the World Bank to
grassroots organizations to understand
how this initiative would work
and to assess the demand for credit.
We found no other organizations
providing credit for community-based
water supply projects and that
the demand for loans is strong. |
| The
WaterCredit Initiative™
is a natural next step for WaterPartners,
a true social entrepreneurial
organization. WaterCredit blends
grants and loans to ensure maximum
impact of funds invested by donors,
while still meeting the needs
of the world’s poor. |
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