Hannah Bellamy, charity: water UK’s Managing Director shares charity: water’s story and how the organization and their partners persevere amid Covid-19 challenges.
Scott Harrison founded charity: water in 2006 with the mission to solve the water crisis- right now, 785million people don’t have access to clean water. To date, charity: water has successfully funded more than 59,000 water projects that serve more than 11.6 million people in 29 countries.
Efficiency
Behind the huge progress, the charity conducted a detailed research and observation to decide where they conduct their projects. One of the first things they look at is the needs of the countries; by looking at the UN’s Human Development Index to see which countries need the most support, then how open local institutions are to outside funding.
Local partners assess the best source of water, the area’s geographical conditions, the community needs and multiple other factors. This is necessary to decide what type of facilities are most appropriate. For example, wells in two places may have similar boreholes, but be equipped with different hand pumps, chosen according to what are available locally.
“We are solution agnostic,” said Hannah. charity: water empower local partners to tailor their solutions based on what the area needs. “So long as it’s the most suitable for that community or geography, from the time you implement it and for the long period” she added.
Sustainability
The charity’s efficiency is reflected in the sustainability of their projects. They avoid areas of conflict to guarantee their project’s sustainability.
“It has to be owned and believed in to be sustained in that community,” said Hannah.
charity: water has built close, sustainable relationships with their partners. “They’re really long term, in-depth partnerships,” Hannah added. First, it has made it easier for charity: water to continue its projects even during COVID-19 restrictions in place. Second, it is easier to assist and share knowledge such as maintenance, health, and safety measures to name a few. The sharing of knowledge helps with the longevity of these facilities, allowing long-term access to clean water. The charity’s partners have also provided knowledge of COVID-19 safety measures.
“Each community has a water committee, usually with six people, 3 men and 3 women,” said Hannah. They understand the basic maintenance work, make preventive measures to avoid disruptions by animals, and are equipped with the basic tools needed to sustain their project.
Transparency
They have a six-month fundraising cycle, distributing funds to local charity partners twice a year. “Because if you give me funding, you don’t want me to sit on it. […] You want it to be used to make a difference as soon as possible,” said Hannah.
charity: water has made their funding information publicly available on their website. Site visitors are able to view files containing details of shares of overhead costs and the share for project funding. Their founder, Scott Harrison wanted to go against the notion that charities are not trustworthy. The charity believes in being responsible with their donors' funds. If their donors intend to donate for purposes of overhead costs, then it would be used accordingly.
“You’re trusting it to us, to have an impact” said Hannah. “It's something that we will always continue to do, we’ll always publish it, we’ll be as open as we can”
However, Hannah acknowledges the challenges charities may face regarding reporting of their finances. Charities may face criticisms regarding the amount of funding allocations. “Not everybody can do it the same way,” she added. She provided an example of medical research, where funding allocations can’t be necessarily tracked in great detail.
Hannah shares that charity: water is very fortunate that their projects are tangible, such that they could track their spending easier.
For more information regarding charity: water, visit:
www.charitywater.org
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