By Sarah Burch
Source: USAID Frontlines, September-October 2013
Keeping water clean for up to 72 hours. Jonathan Kalan
USAID’s Development Innovation Ventures invests in fresh development ideas from anyone with a promising concept, rigorously tests them, and helps sustainably scale those that work. Innovations for Poverty Action: $5.5 million Stage 3
Diarrheal disease, a leading cause of death for children under 5, is responsible for nearly 1 million deaths per year in that age group alone. Many communities seek solutions through protected communal water sources, or, if they can afford it, water pipeline systems. But these systems are ineffective when clean water at the source is stored in the household and re-contaminated with a dirty cup or an unwashed hand.
Using randomized control trials, the Dispensers for Safe Water program at IPA evaluated ways to change behaviors and increase the uptake of chlorine. The evidence demonstrated that minor adjustments in the way chlorine is delivered have major impacts in uptake. Distributing tablets in easy-to-use containers at communal water sources, as opposed to household-level packets, serves as a reminder and creates public norms around the use of chlorine. A randomized trial in Western Kenya found that 50 to 61 percent of households in the treatment group with public dispensers adopted the water treatment, compared with only 6 to 14 percent in the control group.
With $5.5 million in Stage 3 support, Dispensers for Safe Water is scaling dispensers in Kenya and Uganda, and has plans to add more countries to that list. The project aims to provide up to 5 million people with access to dispensers over three years.
