Evidence Action’s Safe Water Program in India Gains Momentum, Backed by GiveWell and Weiss Asset Management Foundation

GiveWell announced that it has recommended a $38.8 million grant to Evidence Action to support its efforts to bring safe drinking water to households across India. This announcement comes as Evidence Action seeks to expand its safe water pilot program (previously discussed here and backed by Weiss Asset Management Foundation and other funders), which analyzed the most effective ways to deploy chlorination technologies in different water systems across India.

To effectively implement these technologies, Evidence Action has partnered with state governments and the Government of India’s Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), a wide-ranging initiative aimed at ensuring universal access to water. As JJM continues to make considerable progress in its efforts to bring piped water to households throughout India, Evidence Action will provide technical assistance at both the central and state levels in implementing chlorination methods to ensure the water is safe to drink.

With GiveWell’s additional funding, Evidence Action has begun expanding the scale of their program in two Indian states – Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh – while continuing to refine the most efficient ways to institutionalize water treatment across India. Unsafe water is responsible for more than 1.2 million deaths globally each year and is the most common cause of diarrhea, the world’s second-leading cause of childhood mortality.

About Evidence Action

Evidence Action is a global nonprofit reaching millions with health interventions that are backed by strong evidence. Its approach ensures exceptional cost-effectiveness, maximizing the impact of every dollar spent. Evidence Action currently works in nine countries and provides more than 10 million people with access to safe water through chlorination treatment interventions, in partnership with local governments and communities. Learn more: www.evidenceaction.org.

About Weiss Asset Management Foundation

Weiss Asset Management Foundation seeks to alleviate suffering globally. The Foundation’s recent substantial grants include support for groundbreaking research on expanding access to vaccines in rural communities in Africa, oxygen concentrators to rural communities in India, and community health workers in rural Nepal. For more information about Weiss Asset Management Foundation, visit www.wamfoundation.org.