m.paani was developed during the Hult Challenge of 2011, where the participants were asked to create a business model that will give a hundred million people access to clean water and sanitation in 5 years.
68% of people in developing countries have a mobile phone- which often forms the only lifeline of the people. The poor spend 51.4 billion dollars annually on mobile phones.This is also one of the few areas in which the poor have choice.
m.paani is a loyalty program that allows users to earn credit towards water and sanitation infrastructure in their neighbourhoods with each top-up.The talk explains the infrastructure by which this is realised, such as the management of the fund etc. It also illustrates the economics of this enterprise by looking at Kianda (Kenya), a settlement in one of the largest slums in the world.
The creators believe the mpaani is an innovation in development financing, which can be used to invest in other development issues such as health and energy.