Water For People (Bolivia)

Water For People -Everyone Forever in Bolivia

Water For People is an NGO promoting the development of universal access to water and sanitation services, sustained by strong communities, businesses, and governments.

According to World Bank Data, 554 people died in 2016 in Bolivia because of inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene. Access to basic and safely managed water and sanitation services in rural communities of Bolivia stood at 78% and 36% respectively according to 2017 data.

More recently, community transmission of COVID-19 has been further exacerbated by the lack of access to water and proper hygiene practices, like handwashing with soap and water. Water For People provides access to safe drinking water, sanitation services, and hygiene education that allows people to combat these issues. Its monitoring framework is designed to capture the number of people directly and indirectly reached through improvement of water and sanitation systems in municipalities where they work.

Since 2019, the Eurofins Foundation has contributed to many aspects of the project ‘Everyone Forever in Bolivia’, including

• The construction or renovation of six community water systems, bringing improved water services to 3,576 people in six communities;
• A collaboration with municipal governments to construct or renovate water infrastructure, resulting in the creation of 82 temporary jobs;
• The organisation of 18 hygiene education workshops for 611 representatives from the Ministry of Education, school principals and staff, parents, and teachers in five ‘Everyone Forever’ municipalities;
• In the Arani and San Pedro municipalities, the achievement of the ‘Forever milestone’ for water, indicating that a sustainable water service has been established and communities and the local government have the skills and capacity to ensure water services continue for future generations.

In 2021/2022, the Eurofins Foundation helped the organisation build on the success of the programme in previous years.

The grant contributed to the implementation of WASH interventions in the eight Everyone Forever municipalities where Water for People work in Bolivia including through:

• The construction or rehabilitation of six community water systems, reaching 1,210 people with improved water service in six communities within four municipalities;
• The construction or expansion of WASH infrastructure in eight schools, improving access to WASH services for 1,434 students and school staff.  

As a result, Water for People reached their Everyone milestone for water in communities in the municipality of Tiraque, meaning that at least 90% of the communities in Tiraque now have high or intermediate water point levels of service, and no communities in the municipality are classified as having inadequate or unimproved water services.  A secondary benefit of Water For People’s partnerships with municipal governments to construct or rehabilitate water infrastructure is the development of employment opportunities. Five temporary jobs related to the WASH sector were created – 40% of which were filled by women.  

In 2022/2023, the Eurofins Foundation renews its support to this programme in Bolivia.

This project contributes to the following United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals