Water Project Sponsorship

The Water Programs team identifies local partners via various WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) sector networks like Rural Water Supply Network, WASH Funders Forum, and other country-level networks and consortia. In addition, our Programs team often asks for referrals from existing partners. Once identified, our team meets with potential new partners and vets their programs and processes before formally bringing them on. We also make regular visits to our existing partners to ensure project quality and integrity.

In most programs, the community is engaged from the beginning. Our local partners prepare communities to receive a water point and often ask them to participate in some part of the construction process. For those who are able, that might look like carrying bags of cement mix, constructing BioSand Filters, or helping dig ditches for a piped system.

Our partners also typically form and train local water committees — a group of community members who are responsible for collecting water fees and maintaining the water point. Underserved or minority community members are intentionally represented on these committees.

charity: water works in some of the most challenging environments in the world. Naturally, that means that forces beyond our control occasionally require a change of plans. The list of uncertainties we've encountered is long: governments collapse, policies change, roads get washed out, pipes break, wells come up dry, or community needs change.

No matter what happens, we promise that 100% of your donation will directly fund water project costs. In addition to progress updates, we'll inform you if the location of your sponsored project has to change. In the unlikely event that we need to totally reallocate your funds, we'll put them toward projects substantially similar to the one you chose to support in the first place. If we absolutely cannot find a suitable project in the country you had hoped to help, we'll work with you to find an alternative.

You’ll receive three reports throughout the 21+ month project implementation timeline. Both your first and second Progress Reports will share more information about our local partner, their programming, and their progress so far.

To set expectations, please know that your project will be part of a larger grant. Your first two reports will feature updates at the grant level. Information specific to your exact project — GPS coordinates, photos, and more — will be included in your Completion Report.

Your Completion Report is delivered to you as soon as your sponsored project is complete and all final data is received and verified. It will include the following information:

• Community name
• Type of water project technology used
• GPS coordinates
• Population served
• Photos of the project, when available

We allow 21+ months for project implementation because we don't consider a project “complete” until we verify that all components are in place and working for the community. For example, we confirm that community trainings are complete, the water quality has been tested, and community surveys have been issued and collected. We also check the photos and GPS coordinates. All of this information is provided by our local partners and verified internally before assembling your Completion Report.

Once a project is built, it belongs to the local community. Thanks to trainings throughout the implementation process, the community should be able to afford and manage most routine repairs. charity: water stays engaged so that if they do run into problems that are beyond their ability to address, some outside help can be arranged. Specific examples of various project life expectancies are below:

• Drilled well with hand-pump: A drilled well, also known as a borehole, has an estimated lifespan of 20-50 years. The hand pump installed on the borehole can have a lifespan of up to 15 years when well maintained.charity: water works closely with our local partners to provide geophysical mapping of aquifers with adequate water supply. Skilled engineers on our partner staff also provide close technical oversight of drillers, ensuring use of the highest quality hand pump materials in areas where groundwater is corrosive. (For example, using stainless steel pipes instead of galvanized iron.) High-quality hardware is the first step in ensuring that a drilled well with a hand pump can achieve its maximum lifespan.

• BioSand Filters: Concrete BSFs can last for more than 25 years. If properly installed and used, the sand and gravel do not have to be replaced. BSFs also require very little cleaning.

• Piped systems: A piped water system with tap stands has an estimated lifespan of 10+ years when properly built and maintained. To extend a system’s lifespan, our local partners take geophysical characteristics and population growth into account. For example, population growth for the next 20 years is considered for new piped water systems. They are therefore designed to be easily expanded and extended. High-quality hardware also contributes to a system’s lifespan. Like hand pumps, most piped systems use a drilled borehole (or multiple) as their water source. Our partners are careful to use stainless steel pipes in environments with corrosive groundwater.Overall, if the system is built with high-quality materials and maintained well, piped systems have a strong likelihood of lasting beyond a decade.

While you’ll receive the GPS coordinates for your sponsored water project, many of these communities are in rural, hard-to-reach places. We rarely facilitate visits to individual projects, and we generally don’t encourage it. The primary reason is that donor trips require ample coordination with our local partners, which inevitably takes time away from building water projects.

However, in the spirit of transparency, we do occasionally coordinate international trips for members of The Well or Water Project Sponsors who have supported us for many years at a significant level.