Green Energy Services support Water Aid in Africa and Asia

Water Aid is a world leading charity that is devoted to providing sustainable, clean and hygienic water supplies in areas where this is vital for health and human development.

As Water Aid's programmes have evolved so has its approach: from an initial emphasis on providing water supplies to poor communities through simple technologies, to the current approach of ensuring access is gained to safe water, sanitation and hygiene education through equitable, integrated and sustainable services working in partnership with various organisations.

Their work is informed by these guiding principles, which seek to ensure that solutions are:

• Appropriate - responding to the real needs of people living in poverty
• Inclusive - accessible, affordable and addressing the needs of the most marginalised people
• Local - working in partnership with local organisations and strengthening their capacity to deliver effective services responding to local needs
• Transferable - sharing learning from practical experience for replication and scaling-up
  Integrated - promoting good hygiene practices to ensure the best health and poverty outcomes for poor communities
• Sustainable - using simple, appropriate and easily-maintained technologies
• Accountable - working with service providers to ensure they are accountable and transparent to the communities they serve

The practice - policy interface

Water Aid’s impact enables millions of people to take their first, essential steps out of poverty, but tackling a crisis of this scale is beyond the capability of WaterAid or any other single organisation. It is not WaterAid's role to provide universal access to water, sanitation and hygiene education services - that responsibility lies with governments.

The biggest challenge they face is a lack of political will which is why they work with our partner organisations and forge wider alliances to challenge the political environment. For instance, at the local level work is undertaken with local government partners to scale up service delivery based on best practice and help direct it to where it is needed most.
 
At the national level decentralisation of power to the sub-national level often occurs without adequate resources or staff capacities. So they advocate that national governments accord higher priority and resources to the provision of water, sanitation and hygiene education, especially to the poorest sections of society.

At the international level they work with other organisations to influence the agenda of donors and to raise awareness of the general public in developed nations so they can exert pressure on their elected representatives.

Much more information about this important work can be found at Water Aid and we at Green Energy Services are committed to helping by donating a percentage of our profit in 2009-2010.

In this way, you – as a customer of Green Energy services will be contributing directly to Water Aid. Our year end accounts will be published in April 2010 and will show how much we have generated through sales of products and services, and how much has been directed to Water Aid.

You can, of course take direct action NOW by contacting Water Aid yourself!

Please note: some material on this website is copyright of Water Aid UK.