Public-Private Partnership Provides Access to Safe Drinking Water During Disasters
In March 2011 Abt Associates launched a partnership that will help make clean, safe drinking water available in Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua in the event of a disaster or emergency.
This partnership is a joint effort between USAID’s 4th Sector Health project, led by Abt Associates, and P&G’s Children’s Safe Drinking Water Programme. P&G will provide supplies of its PUR product, a water purifier, to disaster-prone communities in the three countries. USAID/4th Sector Health will fund Catholic Relief Services to train local partners on the use of PUR and distribute the product to the communities during emergencies.
The project is targeting those regions in Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua that are most prone to rapid-onset disasters, hurricanes, flooding, and landslides. The alliance team already has well-established partnerships with local nongovernmental organisations and departmental/municipal governments in these regions. While the actual beneficiaries will depend on which communities are most affected by natural hazards, priority will be given to the most vulnerable groups.