Technology

So how do we make sure your support creates sustainable solutions for accessing clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene?

We always look for technology that’s easy to transport, even to the world’s most remote communities. It has to be simple to maintain and made from materials that are readily available in local markets, along with any spare parts.

Our technical solutions won’t involve complex maintenance or expensive components or chemicals. And with the training we provide, they’ll be easy for families and communities to use and maintain, long after our partners have completed their work.

Nine technologies we love

Julius Chisengo, Group Operator UMAWA, 48-years-old, stands next to one of the 'pajaj' vehicles that transports the gulper pump equipment, outside the plant at Kigamboni Ward, Temeke Municipality, Dar es Salaam City, Tanzania - February 2015.

Clement and his son Herve at the water point behind their house in Madagascar.

2. The gravity flow system: by tapping into a spring, our partners get water to flow downhill into storage tanks which feed tap stands - like this one used by Clement and his son Herve in Madagascar. Image: WaterAid/Ernest Randriarimalala

Men drill a borehole at a primary school in Zambia.

3. The borehole drilling rig: brilliant if the rock is hard or water is at deeper depths. This rig in Zambia will pump water to the surface to be stored in large tanks, then piped to nearby taps. Image: WaterAid/Chileshe Chanda

Fati and her daughter Safiatou outside the toilet at their home in Zongo, Burkina Faso.

5. The VIP (Ventilated Improved Pit) latrine: with locally available materials and training, these are the kind of toilets communities like Fati and Safiatou’s in Burkina Faso can build and maintain. Image: WaterAid/Nyani Quarmyne/ Panos

Eduardo with his wife Dionicia and their children in front of a recently completed rainwater collection tank in Bilwi, Nicaragua.

6. The rainwater harvesting jar: simple, cheap and effective, collecting rainwater can create a lasting supply of clean water for families like Dionicia’s in Nicaragua, no matter the season. Image: WaterAid/Jordi Ruiz Cirera

7. The hand-dug well: these are the traditional – and still the most common – method of reaching groundwater in rural communities like this one in Ethiopia. Image: WaterAid/Behailu Shiferaw

Rongin is one of the first people to own an ECO-SAN toilet in his village in Rwanda.

8. The composting latrine: a safe place to go to the toilet – and free fertiliser! The composting latrine really does have a huge impact, as Rongin has been discovering in Rwanda. Image: WaterAid/Behailu Shiferaw

Karim drinks clean water from a hand pump in Malawi.

9. The hand pump: the humble hand pump can be a big improvement on using a bucket and rope to collect water from a well, as Karim and Howa demonstrate in Malawi. Image: WaterAid/Alexia Webster

Say hello to the Handypod

With no decent toilets, some communities in Cambodia are forced to relieve themselves in the same waterways used for washing and swimming. One solution? The Handypod: a basic water purifying system that looks like a floating garden.

Read the story on our policy, practice and advocacy website