To assess the potential sustainability of the Safe Water Systems, a research team in Zambia analyzed costs in Zambia of "Clorin" brand product sold in bottles sufficient for a month of water treatment at a price of $0.09. They analyzed production, marketing, distribution, and overhead costs of Clorin before and after sales reached nationwide scale, and analyzed Clorin sales revenue [1]. The average cost per bottle of Clorin production, marketing and distribution at start-up in 1999 was US$ 1.88 but decreased by 82% to US$ 0.33 in 2003, when >1.7 million bottles were sold. The financial loss per bottle decreased from US$ 1.72 in 1999 to US$ 0.24 in 2003. Net program costs in 2003 were US$ 428,984, or only $0.04 per person-month of protection. A sensitivity analysis showed that if the bottle price increased to US$ 0.18, the project would be self-sustaining at maximum capacity. The Safe Water System (SWS), household water treatment with dilute bleach, safe water storage, and behaviour change, has been implemented in more than 20 countries.

[1] Banerjee, A. … [et al.] (2007). Cost and financial sustainability of a household-based water treatment and storage intervention in Zambia. Journal of water and health ; vol. 5, no. 3 ; p. 385-394. DOI: 10.2166/wh.2007.034

Web site: CDC - Safe Water System

Contact: Anyana Banerjee, Environmental Public Health Tracking Branch, Division of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA, abanerjee@cdc.gov

Tags: water quality