Water Projects: The Harm Caused by Well-meaning Philanthropists
This is an interesting column talking about how not to do water projects. The project failure mentioned in the piece was because a handpump common to Malawi was poorly installed in a community in Mozambique, and spare parts for the handpump were not available locally. Although we have known for years that the model of foreigners coming into a community to do a quick water project is not likely to be sustainable, this kind of well-meaning philanthrophy still exists and the author of this article thinks it seems to be increasing. People want to help, and hands-on help might be more meaningful for the donor, but it is likely not the best solution for the people they are trying to help.
At Water 1st, our goal is to always try and redirect that enthusiasm and geniune concern for people without water into our fundraising and outreach activities. Our partner organizations need money to do their work - we believe that is the best help we can provide for them. For people who have the time and want to travel, we do offer trips to meet our beneficiaries and see the work they are doing in person and connect with them on a meaningful, personal level.
We also carefully select the local partner organizations we work with, who have a track record of sustainable projects and who are commited to a specific geographic area so that they are in a position to follow up and constantly improve their work.