Rethinking hydro‐philanthropy: smart money for transformative impact

Updated - Friday 05 March 2010

Water For People CEO Ned Breslin is calling for a transformation in the water and sanitation sector to create sustainable change with long term benefits. In his January 2010 essay [1] he lays bare all the secrets and shortcomings of today’s charity‐based approach in the sector, as well as suggesting a way forward.

The essay focuses on Water for People’s own shortcomings and how it can move from feel‐good, simplistic interpretations and communications on success to a more profound and thoughtful organisation that challenges itself by asking far harder, long‐term impact questions.

Key points of the report include:

current approaches focussing on welfare and charity lead to poor project implementation and high rates of failure;
“sweat equity” from communities is not enough to create a sense of ownership and sustainable projects;
water charities should base funding on a robust set of sustainability metrics;
together philanthropists and development agencies should help instil financial responsibilities on communities and governments in developing countries;
a new culture of accountability and transparency that transcends what currently masquerades as “reporting” in the sector must emerge;
indicators of success should include the percentage of projects that are fully functional and self‐sufficient at 3, 6 and 10 years.

[1] Breslin, N. (2010). Rethinking hydro‐philanthropy : smart money for transformative impact. Read the full paper (PDF file)

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