From S. Damodaran, WaterPartners International India Liaison Office, Tiruchirappalli
Posted 21 August 2008
I am the Country Director of WaterPartners International, India Office. I have come across many NGOs working on or specialising in water and sanitation works with considerable experience, but are unable to get funding support for their projects. Some of them have done excellent work in terms of eco-san toilets, rainwater harvesting and community-led total sanitation projects. These projects are excellent and could be replicated in other parts of India.
This year is the International Year of Sanitation, and we have heard about different funds being allocated for water and sanitation works, but when NGOs really need money for their project execution, they cannot find donor organizations to lend support for their projects. The NGOs working for water and sanitation, except for a few leading organizations, have small operations and with little funds. Although they are not able to locate a potential supporter for their projects, they are dedicated to the sector, working very hard to take a lead in the sector. The NGOs new to the water and sanitation sector, and interested in taking up projects, also encounter financial constraints.
We are at the end of second quarter of the International Year of Sanitation, yet no concrete steps have been taken with regard to the availability of funds for sanitation. Therefore, I request members of the Water Community to share information on:
- Available funding sources for water and sanitation projects (especially those focused on India)
- Experiences related to WATSAN NGOs accessing funding, including any obstacles encountered
We plan to provide this information to the interested NGOs in need of funding support to carry out their water and sanitation interventions locally in their region.
Thank you in advance for contributing to this discussion, and we hope our efforts will help to make the International Year of Sanitation more meaningful and useful for the millions of people who are lacking safe drinking water and sanitation facilities.
Please see attachment below for the responses.