At the 2002 World Summit for Sustainable Development, then-Secretary of State Colin Powell announced the U.S. commitment to the Goals for Sustainable Development. One goal is to “reduce by half, the proportion of people without access to safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation” by the year 2015.

To help reach this goal, leading US-based non-governmental organizations working in water and sanitation formed the Millennium Water Alliance (MWA) as 501(c)(3) organization to offer sustainable solutions through advocacy, shared knowledge, and collaborative programming. Our vision mirrors our belief that no one should die or suffer chronic illness as the result of a water-related disease.

From 2003 on, MWA has created consortium field programs in which member NGOs bring their strengths and share ideas on effective approaches, for maximum efficiency and long-term effectiveness. Our major field programs to date operate in Ethiopia, Kenya, and four countries in Central America (see our Programs page for more information).

Until 2009, MWA was largely operated by the Board members – representatives of the member NGOs – with the help of consultants and member NGO staffs, and in particular Alvin Tans, who served as Treasurer for the Board and oversaw all financial matters for MWA. The growth of the consortium programs and the need for collective advocacy inspired the Board to hire its first full-time executive director, Rafael de Jesus Callejas, a water and sanitation expert with decades of experience, and Henrietta Bullinger, a Washington DC-based development professional.

In 2010, as Henrietta left MWA and the US to move to India with her family, the Board hired a professional public policy advocate and nonprofit executive (John D. Sparks) to establish the first MWA office, and soon afterward to hire a professional program manager (Susan M. Dundon) and a senior accountant (Peter N. Gichuru). By the end of 2011, MWA had four full-time employees, two part-time employees, and also engaged the work of several consultants in the US and abroad. (See our Board page and Staff page for backgrounds.)

MWA now has nine implementing NGOs as full members (represented on the Board of Directors), and two organizations as affiliate members. All members must share in the mission and standards adopted by MWA, and demonstrate their commitment to water and sanitation programs that embody the values of transparency, accountability, efficiency, and sensitivity in all their work.

Programs

Kenya

The Millennium Water Alliance-Kenya Program (MWA-KP) is a USAID-funded initiative to provide safe water, improved sanitation, and hygiene education (WASH) to areas of rural Kenya impacted by drought and climate change. With the objectives of reducing water-borne illness, promoting integrated water resource management to improve livelihoods, and developing partnerships with beneficiary communities for improved sustainability, MWA-KP is part of the Millennium Water Alliance (MWA), a global coalition of leading WASH-focused relief and development organizations.

Ethiopia

MWA Ethiopia has worked to improve WASH access and local capacity in the country since 2004, supporting over 700,000 people as well as a large number of schools and health facilities, across five regions. This has been accomplished through the a partnership of eight international NGOs and five Ethiopian partners. The current program includes five of these international NGOs and multiple local partners.

Latin America

MWA is working to provide better quality, quantity and continuity of safe water to communities in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Colombia.

A-WASH

MWA manages an experimental program under the auspices of the US Department of State called the Ambassador’s Schools Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Initiative (A-WASH). Under this program, they use the convening power of US Ambassadors in selected developing nations to draw attention to the need for greater commitment to WASH in schools for the poorest communities.

Circuit Rider

The idea is simple and cost-effective: A small group of qualified water systems technicians rotate through a circuit of communities in rural areas. The Circuit Riders provide advice and training to local operators on issues of sustainability, governance, treatment technologies, and operations and maintenance. The Circuit Rider Safe Water program has proven over time to help sustain small water systems in countries as diverse as the U.S., Canada, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, Haiti, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Costa Rica.