IN THIS ISSUE
Letter from our Executive Director
Unsafe water, inadequate sanitation, and insufficient hygiene kill 3.5 million people every year, and water scarcity affects more than 40% of the global population. These are staggering numbers, yet GlobalWA members show an amazing amount of ingenuity and resourcefulness when it comes to ensuring WASH in the communities where they work.
In our Issue Brief you will read about how our members have created key partnerships, innovative solutions, and strong monetary commitments to ensure safe water, appropriate hygiene, and innovative waste and sanitation solutions in low- and middle-income communities.
Included are also articles about a key partnership between World Vision and Rotary International safeguarding water for communities in Ethiopia, as well as a revealing interview with a Ugandan WASH expert from The Hunger Project.
GlobalWA members illustrate amazing adaptive solutions in the face of climate change, growing and shifting populations, and the need for new innovations. We hope you will be as inspired as we are!
Jane Meseck
Interim Executive Director
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Issue Brief
Closing the Resource Gap: How Clean Water Changes Lives
By Aneesh Chatterjee
Photo: drfuenteshernandez/Pixabay
Members at Global Washington take innovative steps to address the global water crisis. Communities impacted by a lack of access to clean drinking water, proper sanitation infrastructure or an awareness of healthy sanitary practices, are facing disease, malnourishment and problems in other sectors, spilling into education and local markets. To that end, organizations are bringing unique solutions that address the crisis at multiple levels of operation, closing the gap between clean water and at-risk communities.
For the Starbucks Foundation, partnerships are integral to making a genuine impact on the future of water. With multiple partnerships and projects across countries, Starbucks spotlights water conversation as a strong priority. Part of their 2020 plan to reduce their water and waste footprint to 50% by 2030, a total of 50 million USD in grants was announced in March 2023, marking their commitment to building a resilient ecosystem for long-term sustainability. Partnering with other members of the United Nations Water Resilience Coalition, the United States International Development Finance Corporation and other collaborators, Starbucks launched the grants initiative with an initial pledge of 25 million USD to WaterEquity’s Global Access Fund IV, with an intended mobilization of new funding parties to match their investment. The initiative aims to fund access to WASH facilities, products, and services across countries reaching up to 5 million beneficiaries.
Other prolific partnership-driven projects include their work with The Nature Conservancy to replenish the water of Qiandao Lake in Zhejiang Province, China with an investment of 3 million RMB, and their joint venture with World Vision, Alsea Foundation and Planet Water Foundation to install 25 water towers in Mexico and provide safe water access to 45,000 people. Their ongoing partnership with the Planet Water Foundation, established in 2021, has brought clean water access to over 100,000 people across Cambodia, India, Thailand, Indonesia, Laos and the Philippines with the construction of 57 water towers.
These tangible, on-the-ground construction of deliverables – a product of Starbucks’ partnerships and resource mobilization – are effective interventions also used by Heifer International. With practical devices installed for specific community needs, Heifer’s projects bridge the resource access gap in similar ways: the installation of hand-pumped wells in Vietnam and cisterns in Haiti have reduced significant travel time for locals, bringing quick access to water without the need to manually transport water from a known source.
In turn, easy access further simplifies efforts to teach and inculcate proper hygiene and sanitation practices. In Senegal, Heifer’s extensive efforts to improve water access has led to solar-powered wells drilled in close proximity to local residences. Beyond sanitation, hygiene and health benefits, the improved accessibility has also positively impacted the health of their cattle, higher agricultural yield, and increased income potential for families. Although WASH is a central focus of these interventions, the benefits impact sectors beyond water supply management, spilling over to economic resilience and agricultural prosperity.
Construction projects leading to promising sustainable development in related sectors is also seen in high-impact projects by Gargaar Relief Development Organization (GREDO), and their goals to improve schools in Somalia. Water and sanitation facilities being one of the underdeveloped facets of local schools, with others being inadequate classroom space and insufficient teaching staff, GREDO has built two new schools with expanded classroom spaces, proper washroom facilities, and other capacity building measures to support the management of education in schools.
GREDO’s work to redevelop schools includes special considerations for effective latrines, an integral component for reliable WASH infrastructure. On a broader scale, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation works extensively to develop sanitary, effective toilets and improve waste management infrastructure across China, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. A multi-strategy approach includes adaptive innovation to evolve traditional toilet infrastructure for different regions, including chemical treatment, water recycling and pathogen removal through low-cost designs powered with renewable energy.
Adaptive technologies prove to be essential not only in revolutionizing traditional infrastructure, but emergency response as well. To that end, Oxfam provides unique solutions for immediate relief in regions following environmental disasters. In the wake of Cyclone Idai in Mozambique, their Livesaver Cubes allowed for quick and portable filtration of contaminated water, as available infrastructure had been destroyed. In 2018, Oxfam brought the SkyHydrant – a tool for converting groundwater into drinkable water without chemical treatments – to Palu, Indonesia, following a tsunami. In Somalia, Oxfam provides solar-powered water desalination units to decontaminate water for drinking and livestock. The construction of a 100-kilometer pipeline in the DRC, solar-powered water treatment plants in Sudan, and a gravity well system in Nepal all encapsulate adaptive innovations by Oxfam to bring communities back from the brink, and closer to reliable water access.
Also working in disaster response is the Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation. Their Water Purification and Renewable Power (WARP) systems, built for both natural disasters and war zones, aims to bring clean drinking water to 3 hospitals in Hudaydah.
Like the Starbucks Foundation, Mercy Corps uses strategic partnerships to leverage resources and energy in building WASH resilience across global communities. Their Public Private Partnership (PPP) approach aims to work with local governments and communities to implement WASH interventions that directly bridge the resource gap in targeted regions. Collaborations with the authorities in the DRC, for example, have allowed Mercy Corps to implement their IMAGINE Program, extending water supply access for the cities of Goma and Bukavu – bringing safe water access to 1.5 million beneficiaries.
Promoting awareness as a resilience strategy is also one of the approaches adopted by Mercy Corps. Awareness campaigns leading to the instillation of stronger hygiene practices are emphasized as powerful measures against the spread of disease, particularly in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, in Mercy Corps’ 2021 WASH Approach document. An additional arm of their awareness strategy is the promotion of more resource-conscious use of water and WASH facilities once constructed, including their operation and management. By promoting an awareness of the importance of efficient and sustainable use of water in regions where scarcity is rampant, communities are guided toward sustainable management of their resources for long-term health benefits.
Promoting resource consciousness also entails showing communities how to best use what’s available, as demonstrated by Sukarya. Taking on the malnutrition crisis in India, of which clean water access is an integral cornerstone, Sukarya’s targeted interventions focus on building awareness of nutrition, educating communities on how to best use their most accessible resources, and providing vital supplements and micronutrients to at-risk populations. Promoting knowledge of breastfeeding and its importance for child nutrition is a key goal across their programs, alongside raising awareness of what produce, grains and other foods are locally available for any given community, distributing easy recipes that prioritize efficiency and nutritional value, setting up health centers and medical testing camps, group information workshops, cooking demonstrations, and distributing essential nutritional supplements.
Sukarya upholds WASH interventions as a consistent priority in their programs, with implementation models for both school and community levels. For students, raising awareness about the importance of hand washing, water-borne disease and sanitation habits builds resilient behaviors, while information sessions and awareness campaigns for communities at large establish simple but effective sanitary habits to prevent illnesses.
Encapsulating the power of resource consciousness and mobilization of impactful actors, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation also takes steps to build resource-aware communities through effective partnerships that incentivize the shift toward water-conscious markets with new service models for local economies. New models provide financial incentive for both private and public actors, encouraging the use, delivery and deployment of newer WASH technologies. A strong focus on policy advocacy for local governments ensures that communities adapt efficiently to implement vital technologies, practices and habits that close the resource gap for millions of beneficiaries.
All-rounded approaches, from emergency tools and technologies to hygiene education and project monitoring, can be seen in the work of Water1st, with their pipeline projects bringing drinking water and sanitation relief to communities across India, Bangladesh, Kenya, Ethiopia, Honduras, and Mozambique. WaterAid works to combat cholera outbreaks with sanitation training, relief kits and handwashing stations across 22 countries.
From specialized focus projects to broad-spectrum sector innovation, participating actors are innovating to bring people closer to clean water, with lasting impact on the spread of disease, malnourishment, emergency response, and community development. Water proves to be essential not only for the health and wellness of individuals, but the proliferation of agriculture, livestock, strengthening family income, enabling schools to teach and bringing more students into classrooms, mobilizing governments and private actors to adapt and implement solutions, and beyond.
The following GlobalWA members are supplying innovative and resourceful solutions for WASH in the communities where they work.
Gargaar Relief and Development Organization — GREDO
GREDO takes a comprehensive approach to developing and strengthening the water sector in Somalia. At the core of their strategy is the drilling and rehabilitation of various water sources, including boreholes, earth dams, shallow wells, and pipeline extensions. GREDO collaborates closely with key stakeholders, such as the Ministry of Water and WASH clusters, to align its interventions with sectoral priorities and gaps.
Upon completion of the water infrastructure projects, GREDO transfers the management of boreholes to local water supply companies, establishing a partnership framework for sustainable operation and maintenance.
During emergencies, GREDO rapidly implements water trucking projects to deliver potable water, complementing its long-term rehabilitation initiatives. The aim is to ensure reliable access to clean water, even in the face of natural disasters.
GREDO also emphasizes the need to strengthen the capacity of local authorities and communities in water governance, climate change adaptation, and multi-stakeholder partnerships. The goal is to develop resilient and sustainable water systems in Somalia.
Overall, GREDO’s comprehensive approach focuses on improving water access, empowering local stakeholders, and building long-term resilience to address the country’s critical water challenges.
Global Communities
Global Communities catalyzes community action to strengthen systems that deliver water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. Advancing water security is among our top priorities both in crisis settings and stable environments. For example, we work with local partners to improve water resource management, protect watershed ecosystems, and increase sustainable and equitable access to safe drinking water. Our WASH interventions include community mobilization, infrastructure improvements and climate adaptations. We also work to improve WASH governance; strengthen the capacity of WASH service providers; and create an enabling environment for private sector participation in the WASH sector. Our behavior-led approaches address factors that influence the adoption of optimal WASH practices.
Landesa
Landesa champions and works to strengthen land rights for millions of those living in poverty worldwide, primarily rural women and men, to promote social justice and provide opportunity. Across the world, access to land is often intertwined with access to water. Strong land rights can enable a family or community to both use a clean water source and ensure the water remains safe.
In India, Landesa partnered with West Bengal’s State Government to allocate micro-plots of land—large enough to build a home and plant a garden—to families in rural areas to alleviate extreme poverty and hunger. Legal land ownership was a prerequisite to accessing various government benefits, including drinking water and sanitation hook-ups. Through Landesa’s work, different government agencies were better able to collaborate and offer a foundation for families to build a healthier, more stable future. This collaborative micro-plot program scaled across West Bengal and brought land, clean water, and hope to hundreds of thousands of people.
Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is a global team of nearly 6,000 humanitarians working in more than 40 countries to create a world where everyone can prosper. We work alongside communities, local governments, forward-thinking corporations, and social entrepreneurs to achieve four interconnected goals: for people to have clean water, sufficient and nutritious food, sustainable economic opportunities, and a peaceful life free from conflict. Climate change is worsening and intensifying conflicts by affecting natural resources such as water, land, and forests.
Mercy Corps’ pathway to water security moves us closer to a world where people have equitable and sustained access to clean and safe water to meet their everyday needs. Through our programs, partnerships, and influence, Mercy Corps helps sustain improvements in clean, safe, and equitable water access – even in times of crisis. By sequencing, layering, and integrating our peace, humanitarian, and development assistance, we strengthen the capacity of communities and the water systems they rely on to cope, adapt, and thrive.
Oxfam
Oxfam is widely recognized as a leading organization supporting affected populations to access water, sanitation, and public health service and resources (WaSH). From drilling wells for Palestinian refugees in Jordan in 1962 to the present-day, Oxfam and partners have been at the forefront of humanitarian WASH responses worldwide. In the last year alone, Oxfam and partners have supported 7.7 million people with WASH through enhanced humanitarian action. Many others have benefitted from sustainable development interventions, such as Oxfam’s work with governments and the private sector to deliver long-lasting services. Innovation has been at the center of Oxfam’s work in WASH, with innovations in technology and approaches to WASH implementation now being widely adopted by the WASH sector.
Oxfam’s visions is that women, men and children affected by disaster, conflict, and the impacts of climate change will have access to safe, appropriate and high-quality WaSH services that enable them to mitigate public health risks in a dignified way.
Path From Poverty
Path From Poverty has been partnering with women in rural Kenya for 25 years because the empowerment of women is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty. In the rural Ukambani region, as in many areas of the world, women and girls face the constant risk of sexual assault and wild animal attacks because of their daily walk for water. This water is necessary for survival yet not even fit for human consumption. Path From Poverty provides rainwater catchment tanks that are installed at women’s homes. Access to clean, safe water has profound impacts. Women and girls are safer from violence. Girls have time to attend school and study, opening doors for future opportunities. Women have time for income generation, caring for their families, and rest. The health of families is improved, and money that women spend treating waterborne illnesses can be devoted to children’s school fees, purchasing healthy food, and expanding their micro-enterprises. Rainwater catchment tanks are vehicles for change, allowing women to devote their time to personal development and creating brighter futures for themselves and their families. This economic empowerment strengthens their position within the family and community.
Water1st
Water1st is on a mission to free women and girls around the world from the burden of water collection, liberating their time and energy for education and paid employment.
Water1st is committed to meeting the standards of SDG6 – every Water1st project includes a 24/7 supply of safe water at household faucets and a toilet.
Water flowing from a household tap makes it possible to have sufficient water quantities to perform the most critical public health activities like washing hands and using a low-flush toilet. A faucet at the home has also been proven to increase income, educational achievement for girls, and the likelihood the water system will be sustainable over the long-term.
Water1st’s locally-led partners have constructed more than 4,700 community-managed projects to date, eliminating over 123 million hours of grueling water-carrying by females. Over 99% of systems constructed since Water1st’s founding in 2005 are still supplying water today. The return on investment in these projects based on time-savings alone is over 700%.
Communities in low-income settings around the world face many challenges. The pathway to a better future begins with household access to piped water and toilets.
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Organization Profile
Joint Interventions for Ethiopia’s Water Crisis: World Vision partners with the Rotary Foundation
By Aneesh Chatterjee
Community Water Point- Nono Chemeri -Abdi Boru Primary School, Yaya Gulele, Ethiopia. Photo: World Vision
Facing the fallout of ongoing armed conflict, impending natural disaster and subsequent resource scarcity is Ethiopia, ranking at 9 out of the top 10 most at-risk countries for humanitarian emergencies on the Independent Rescue Committee’s 2024 Emergency Watchlist. From a three-year drought to overbearing floods in vulnerable regions, rampant food and water insecurity is projected to be on the rise, driven by military tensions and an influx of displaced persons from neighboring states. In Ethiopia, and across Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti and Eretria, an estimated 20 million people are predicted to be in dire need of food and water assistance by UNICEF.
In turn, organizations have taken steps to mitigate the crisis and build resilience in communities from the ground up. The Rotary Foundation and World Vision (a member of GlobalWA since 2009), with decades of multi-sector experience in global development and crisis management, have partnered to address water scarcity in Ethiopia through specialized, on-the-ground interventions in targeted communities. Their efforts not only include the establishment of access to vital resources like clean water, but an inculcation of sanitation habits and community-mobilized hygiene awareness that promises long-term resilience against diseases and malnutrition.
Tim Arnold is a long-time Rotarian with the Redmond Rotary Club and Rotary District 5030 and deeply involved in the water project in Ethiopia. He emphasizes the urgency of their mission. “We realized that without clean water, everything else we were trying to achieve—education, health, economic stability—was being undermined. Clean water is the foundation upon which sustainable development is built.”
To learn more about their collaboration in Ethiopia, GlobalWA spoke with Brian Gower, Senior Director of Foundations and Partnerships at World Vision.
What is the Rotary Foundation?
Rotary is the largest civil society organization in the world, with a global network of 1.4 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem solvers who unite to create lasting change – across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves. Rotary is known globally as a leader in eradicating polio, contributing more than $2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect nearly 3 billion children in 122 countries from this paralyzing disease.
Since 2002, World Vision has been a collaborating partner with Rotary on large-scale global grants focused on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and a number of other sectors. Together, both organizations have invested $50 million dollars in collaborative projects, transforming the lives of over 56 million people around the world.
A featured partnership project of 2023 was in a rural area of Ethiopia called Yaya Gulele.
Schoolgirl, Yaya Gulele, Ethiopia. Photo: World Vision
Why did World Vision partner with the Rotary Foundation?
World Vision understands the importance of our joint ventures. Rotary recognizes the value of World Vision’s expertise and professionalism, our focus on sustainability, and our diligence in reporting and accounting. Also, with matters of intervention, World Vision’s local staff bringing a physical presence with feet on the ground have significant impact when working with local governments. The Rotary Foundation’s trust was demonstrated when they selected World Vision as a partner for the first Program of Scale grant of $6M, and most recently for a $30M grant with the Rotary Health Communities Challenge.
Why did you choose the Yaya Gulele region in Ethiopia for this initiative?
Ethiopia ranks 173 out of 187 countries on the 2014 Human Development Index. The average household income is 100 USD per month, and 34.7% of the population lives below the poverty line.
Of the 84 million people living in rural Ethiopia, 69% lack access to clean water or rely on unimproved water sources and 96% lack access to safe sanitation. In Ethiopia, 60-80% of communicable diseases are caused by a lack of safe water access, poor sanitation facilities and scarce hygiene practices. In addition, an estimated 50% malnutrition-related problems are caused by environmental factors surrounding the lack of basic sanitation in the region.
There are strong links between sanitation and stunting, and open defecation can lead to fecal-oral diseases such as diarrhea, which can cause and worsen malnutrition. Diarrhea is the leading cause of child mortality rates in Ethiopia, accounting for 23% of all deaths of children under 5 – more than 70,000 a year.
Yaya Gulele is a district in the North Shwa Zone of Oromia state. World Vision has been operating there since its inception in 2007. The district has a total of 24 schools, but only a few of them have their own safe drinking water supply. Thus, World Vision and Rotary – in collaboration with the district administration and local communities – has planned the construction of a water supply project from multiple sources for many of these rural and semi-urban schools. Most of the water sources, including shallow wells, will be equipped with solar power options to draw water.
Furthermore, learning cannot proceed properly without WASH facilities in schools. Integrating practical activities around safe drinking water, sanitation, and handwashing into lessons and daily tasks help reinforce the adoption of healthy behaviors in students and their families.
Global Hand Washing Day Celebration at Fital Primary School, 2024, Yaya Gulele, Ethiopia. Photo: World Vision
What is the scope of this collaboration?
The is a collaborative project between the Rotary Club of Redmond (District 5030), the Rotary Club of Addis Ababa Bole, World Vision US, and World Vision Ethiopia. The project duration is 2 years, with a total budget of $680,000, including $340,000 raised by Rotary and the rest matched by World Vision.
One of the areas in the original proposed plan for intervention was called Daleti. World Vision and Rotary were unable to access this location due to the insecurity and conflict. This area was going to provide WASH to the Dirre Daleti primary and secondary schools, reaching 963 students and 28,062 people from the surrounding community. Other schools impacted were Nano, Tigi, Illu, and Qare Yasa primary schools with a total of 2,509 students and nearby community members.
Rotary and World Vision came together on the 15th of March, 2023, and decided on an alternative site called Fital Town. Although Fital has fewer schools (9, compared to Daleti’s 14), the number of beneficiaries at Fital are 48,719 – significantly more than those in the Daleti site, on account of Fital Town being a semi-urban center with a higher population density.
What are the project’s goals?
This WASH in Schools project aims to improve the health and learning performance of school-aged children – and, by extension, that of their families – by reducing the incidence of diseases related to water and sanitation. WASH in Schools focuses on the development of life skills and the mobilization of parents, communities, governments and institutions to work together to improve hygiene, water access and sanitation conditions. Interventions for this project include the construction of safe water supply points, hand washing stations and sanitation resources. Fully integrated life skills education, focusing on key hygiene behaviors for school children, are also a priority. Ventilated, accessible pit latrines with access ramps are to be added, as well as access to menstrual hygiene products for girls.
To ensure long-term feasibility, teachers and community members will be trained on the operation and maintenance of water supply structures. Replacement parts are readily available in local markets. The supervision of any major maintenance needs will fall to the Education Office of Yaya Gulele, in collaboration with the Water Office.
Rotarians, in particular, will supervise the overall project implementation, manage progress reports, participate in review meetings with all pertinent stakeholders and partners, and ensure that set standards of implementation are being met.
VIP Latrine -Burka Aleltu (for girls), Yaya Gulele, Ethiopia. Photo: World Vision
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced?
The ongoing conflict between the Ethiopian and forces in Tigray, Amhara and Oromia have thrown the country into turmoil. Security concerns have made it nearly impossible to work on development in certain areas.
Beyond that, we have faced challenges in securing the necessary funds for the project – something that our partnership with World Vision has greatly helped with. There were significant delays in getting the project approved, and even further delays in approving the change of target sites due to security concerns forcing teams to move. Certain supplies that had to be imported internationally, like solar panels and pump materials, also had noticeable delays.
Nonetheless, there have been successes. As we’re currently 1.5 years into the 2-year project, we’ve completed half of the project’s total set of goals.
What are some of the milestones reached so far?
We have equipped thousands of Fital Town residents with reliable water access via the completion of our pipeline extension to a local water source. Beneficiaries not only include school students, but health centers, internally displaced persons and the related families and communities at large. In schools alone, a total of 3157 students and 163 teachers now have safe water access, with a total of 11 access points constructed across multiple schools.
We’ve fully completed the drilling of 3 new water wells in Abdi Boru and Wabe sites. We have installed solar pumps with 4 solar panels, equipped with plastic water tanks and tanker stands. We’ve fully installed a 6-faucet water pipeline across 3 schools in Yasa Lemil, Dide Guba and Burka Aleltu, and achieved 90% completion at 2 schools in Nono Chemeri and Abdi Boru.
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From its formation in 2002, World Vision’s historic partnership with the Rotary Foundation has implemented 22 intervention projects, with 5 more in progress, addressing disease crises and resource scarcity. Collectively, their projects have raised over $50 million and brought relief and support to over 5 million beneficiaries across the world.
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Goalmaker
Ibrahim Ogaram, Food Security and Nutrition Officer, The Hunger Project Uganda
Ibrahim Ogaram at one of the THP constructed community wells. Photo: THP
The Hunger Project (THP), a GlobalWA member since 2018, was founded in 1977 with the goal of ending world hunger. They have ongoing programs in Africa, Asia, and Latin America aimed at mobilizing rural grassroots communities to achieve sustainable progress in health, education, nutrition, and family income. WASH is one of those activities and it is one of the foundations for community health.
THP is exemplary when it comes to the training and empowerment of local actors in communities where they work, and we had the honor of being connected to one of their local WASH and nutrition specialists, a local Ugandan who is a dedicated Food Security and Nutrition Officer with over 12 years of experience in livelihoods, nutrition, and WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) practices.
Hello and welcome, Ibrahim. Thank you so much for being willing to talk with us today. Please introduce yourself to our audience…
Thank you very much, Joel. My name is Ibrahim Ogaram from The Hunger Project Uganda. I work as a program officer for Food Security and Nutrition. I’m very passionate about our nutrition project, which includes several thematic areas, one of which is WASH.
This is now my sixth year with The Hunger Project, Uganda. Previously, I worked on an agriculture project that supported organic production without harsh chemicals. Now, I am focused on our nutrition project, which integrates WASH as a key component. Our WASH program focuses on sanitation and training around health and nutrition.
What or who in your upbringing and early professional career drove you to work in community development and WASH activities?
From the time I graduated in 2008, I started working with communities in gardening, where WASH was a priority. Seeing communities improve their hygiene, sanitation, access to clean water, and waste management fueled my passion.
The most interesting thing about WASH is that, when I relate what happened in 2008 to during the COVID time, I realize that the handwashing practices we promoted back then proved crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the importance of WASH. If all the communities in the entire world followed the same procedures automatically, they would even have less or no infection, as compared to the time of COVID-19.
Did you start off in your local community where you grew up? Or was this just where you happened to be living at the time?
My first job took me to a different community in another district, where I worked with 25 communities transferring information and knowledge of WASH as well as other thematic areas. But the emphasis wasn’t on WASH. When I joined The Hunger Project, I was pleased to continue similar work with new communities. What I was doing with the different communities previously is the same that I’m doing with these other communities through The Hunger Project. It is a very natural fit.
Shallow well used by the community before spring well were constructed by THP-U. Photo: THP
How did you hear about and come to work for The Hunger Project?
Before I joined The Hunger Project, I used to hear about them through the work they do, because one of my neighboring districts where I come from The Hunger Project was working there, so I used to hear about them through the communities they were working with. I also heard of The Hunger Project through radio stations and TV broadcasts. Then, when they advertised for jobs through newspapers and some social media platforms, I got to understand The Hunger Project further and also applied. Luckily enough, I succeeded on my first attempt and joined The Hunger Project Uganda.
Constructed community spring wells by THP-U. Photo: THP
What is The Hunger Project’s approach or philosophy regarding water access, sanitation, and hygiene?
THP emphasizes community engagement and responsibility. One of the ideas that I learned is, for example, when you’re working on a community water source, it’s not your responsibility to take charge of the water source, but engaging the community to take full responsibility for the water source that is serving them is key, and I see it working so well. For example, with the still water sources, we established water user committees to manage local water sources, ensuring the community takes ownership of maintenance and protection. The committee members are the people fully responsible for taking charge of the water source in terms of cleaning and repairs, terms of protecting it, and so on. To me, it’s really a very great philosophy.
Tell us about some of the projects you’ve been working on – what have you been most excited about?
My very first project with The Hunger Project focused on agroecology and organic farming, which was very fulfilling due to its positive impact on human health. The agroecology project, focused on no use of chemical synthetic fertilizers. We know very well that chemicals and synthetic fertilizers, most of them are causes of human cancers, causes of actual illness to humanity. I saw it as a very exciting project and a pro-community project. The community comes together, producing their own healthy food, and nursing the seeds for planting or regeneration.
Currently, I am excited about our nutrition project, which supports numerous schools and health facilities by improving their access to water and handwashing facilities. This project is dear to my heart because of the number of people it supports are mostly schools. Through this project, we educate and train school children on the importance of handwashing. It is exciting to visit to monitor and witness the impact being made by these supports to the communities. It makes me feel very happy that your hard work is working very well for the community.
How does THP leverage partnerships or collaborations to help their WASH initiatives?
Collaboration is key to addressing WASH comprehensively. As an organization you may not be in a position to do everything about WASH in the community because WASH is a very wide subject that touches on health, water, waste management etc. But you realize that we work with various organizations that focus on different aspects of WASH, such as constructing latrines, providing water facilities, and promoting handwashing to ensure holistic solutions. Collaborating, you find yourself handling WASH holistically in all areas because we know WASH is a very wide subject – that is on health, that is on water, that is on waste management. If you work collaboratively, you find it is handled holistically.
A THP constructed community well. Photo: THP
When looking at the current challenges of climate change, shifting politics, people being forcibly displaced in record numbers… what are you most concerned about?
Climate change has negative impacts on WASH activities. For instance, floods can cause widespread contamination by bringing pollutants and waste into communities, leading to outbreaks of waterborne diseases. On the other hand, droughts result in water scarcity, forcing communities to rely on unsafe water sources. Additionally, strong winds can carry dust and debris that contaminate water supplies and create health hazards.
Then, when you come to politics, political instability and displacement disrupt communities’ access to WASH facilities, exacerbating these issues. These challenges are significant threats to our work. If there’s de-stability in a given country or in a given community, you find people moving from one place to another. They may reach a community where there are no facilities for WASH, like there are no pit latrines, there are no bus shelters, and there are no sources of water. You find such a community getting so much affected as a result of lack of security in a given country. For me, as a WASH specialist, I wouldn’t wish such circumstances to occur in a given country or in a given community.
What’s next for you – are you going to continue with WASH?
I am passionate about WASH and consider it an integral part of my life’s work. In every community I visit, even if my primary purpose is different, I always make it a point to address WASH issues. For example, I often demonstrate how to construct and use simple, low-cost solutions like local pedal tippy taps, which are crucial for promoting handwashing and hygiene. These small actions can have a significant impact, as they are easy to implement and maintain using locally available materials.
Looking ahead, I aspire to become an international expert in WASH. My goal is to expand my reach and share my knowledge and experience with a broader audience. I want to work on larger projects that tackle complex WASH challenges and contribute to global initiatives aimed at improving water, sanitation, and hygiene practices. I believe that by continuing to innovate and collaborate with other professionals and organizations, we can create sustainable solutions that benefit communities worldwide.
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Member Blogs
GREDO Delivering Sustainable Water Solutions in Somalia: GREDO’s Holistic Approach
Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation Hope in Every Drop: Bringing Clean Water to Yemen
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Welcome New Members
Please welcome our newest Global Washington members. Take a moment to familiarize yourself with their work and consider opportunities for support and collaboration!
Stronger Stories
Stronger Stories is a social enterprise that helps good ideas get the support they deserve. Combining story science with expert coaching/consultancy, Stronger Stories supports organizations and social entrepreneurs dedicated to solving systemic issues. Free tools and online learning to democratize storytelling power are available at strongerstories.org.
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IN THIS ISSUE
Letter from our Executive Director
In this month’s Issue Brief we deep dive into how our members are addressing SDG 1 “No Poverty” and SDG 8 “Decent Work and Economic Growth,” with a specific eye on how members are leveraging new technologies (such as AI), digital skills development, closing the gender work gap, and creating new opportunities in this ever-changing landscape of technological change.
To understand the evolving workforce challenges, we talked with Ama Akuamoah, Director of Market Engagement of the Digital Innovation Group at Opportunity International who has direct on-the-ground involvement delivering solutions to final-mile communities. We also had a revealing conversation with Naria Santa Lucia, General Manager of Digital Inclusion at Microsoft Philanthropies who talked about the importance of upskilling communities with digital technologies, services, and products to ensure no one is left behind.
The programs and interventions GlobalWA members are implementing in communities where they work are exemplifying a new standard and are setting a hopeful course for current and future generations.
Jane Meseck
Interim Executive Director
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Issue Brief
The Future of Work
By Cady Susswein
Teenagers working with computers – image generated by OpenArt AI by GlobalWA.
The very first Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) is “No Poverty.” It’s so important that SDG 8 further expands to cover “Decent Work and Economic Growth” – key factors in pulling people out of poverty. Decent work is the cornerstone of a thriving society, ensuring dignity, security, and fulfillment for individuals, while driving economic prosperity. In the rapidly evolving landscape of the future of work, digital skills are becoming increasingly crucial to stay competitive and adaptable. They unlock new opportunities all over the world and enable access to remote work and flexible employment, promoting inclusivity and work-life balance. By investing in digital skills development, GlobalWA members are fostering sustainable growth and resilience in the face of technological change.
Digital Literacy
The digital journey starts early, and making sure children get access to digital resources is an important first step. The Sehgal Foundation in India runs Project Umeed, a program to establish digital libraries with computers, internet, and educational software in underserved communities. In partnership with Trees for Life, the India Development Relief Fund, and the Guru Krupa Foundation, their programs specifically engage young women and girls, who are often disproportionately affected by the digital divide. Through Sehgal programs, women and girls master basic computer applications, learn how to conduct an internet search, and use their new skills to apply for jobs, make online payments, and apply for government support programs. Their Sakshyam program helps students fact check information, understand bias in language, and evaluate online resources to be able to make informed decisions on misleading information that can be prevalent in the digital world.
For Sukarya, innovation doesn’t always mean digital. In India, 32 million children can’t go to school, often due to lack of access to education facilities. So Sukarya developed a classroom on wheels that could travel from community to community. The buses are equipped with computers and offer digital skills classes in addition to literacy and other basic educational needs for children of multiple age groups.
In sub-Saharan Africa, the education statistics can be equally bleak. More than half of children do not complete primary school and of those that do, two thirds haven’t mastered basic reading proficiency. With high student-to-teacher ratios and little access to study materials, mobile-phone-based education platforms can leapfrog some of these intractable problems. Global Partnerships partnered with Eneza Education to create a Digital Study Materials program in which children like Imelda in Kenya can access study guides, take SMS-based tests, and send questions to a network of teachers who provide personalized responses all on their phones. The 9 million children who use the program see a 23% average improvement in learning outcomes. Most importantly, this uptick means that many of these kids are more likely to continue their education.
Amplio Network works to solve global poverty by addressing illiteracy challenges with their innovative Talking Book. The Talking Book is a durable, cost-effective audio device that was originally designed to enhance literacy skills for school children, but unexpectedly became an invaluable tool for disseminating health and agricultural education in remote areas. Unlike the radio or a fleeting session given by community workers, people do not need to rely on memory or taking notes and can refer to the Talking Book whenever they need.
Digital Tools for Entrepreneurship
Global Partnerships also invests in Arifu, a free mobile-based education platform that provides low-income Kenyans with best practices in financial planning, agriculture, and other topics, enabling households to pull themselves out of poverty. Organizations that want to reach a certain audience can create licensable courses. For instance, an agribusiness wanted to train farmers to increase sales. Arifu digitized the business’s in-person training, which reduced the cost of delivery from $20 to $1 per farmer. The result was increased farmer yields by 55% and $187 more income per acre. Similarly, a digital financial service provider wanted to increase usage of a new savings and borrowing product in rural areas. The courses Arifu developed helped the provider accomplish its goals, but more importantly it led to a 500% increase in savings deposits for low-income users. A win-win for both sides. Relatedly, Mifos X is another open source financial services platform that works with financial institutions to offer them affordable, adaptable, and accessible financial applications for their users.
Mercy Corps established MicroMentor – the world’s largest community for young entrepreneurs looking for mentors and volunteer professionals looking to support mentees. The platform has an 83% survival rate for mentored entrepreneurs, who create twice as many jobs as entrepreneurs without mentors. For two-thirds of users, MicroMentor was the only resource they had for early-stage mentorship. Another Mercy Corps program called Gaza Sky Geeks is a platform in the Palestinian territory to teach young people coding and support them with freelancing and establishing tech businesses. Graduates of their coding and freelancing training programs have collectively reported over $5 million in earnings one year after graduation.
Global Communities implements the Digital Savings Group (DSG) Hub, an online learning and community platform that facilitates (and hopefully inspires) safe and inclusive online saving. The DSG Hub offers how-to resources and ways for users to connect and collaborate. A study by a similar Global Communities program showed that savings groups that use digital record keeping apps experience greater transparency, fewer conflicts, and greater financial capability that those who use analog systems. The study also found evidence that highlights the need to include gender considerations in the design of savings group apps.
Ashesi University Foundation in Ghana has a mission to educate a new generation of ethical and entrepreneurial leaders in Africa with the critical thinking skills and courage it will take to transform the continent. Derick Omari, an Ashesi graduate, initially founded a project called Tech Era to teach basic computer skills to children in Berekuso. It has grown to teach hundreds of students throughout the country, and Omari later went on to develop an adaptive technologies company, offering products especially to the disabled.
In Zanzibar, Tanzania, there is a huge pay disparity between tourism professionals locally and those in the tourism industry globally. Welcome Ideas works with Zanzibaris, especially women, to set up their own small, responsible tourism businesses to keep tourism revenue in the pockets of locals. The organization offers an online portal for education, networking, and more. Classes offer support navigating business information technology systems and other issues.
Food Security
The Hunger Project sees the value of digital skills in preventing hunger. The digital divide means more than 2 billion women don’t have mobile phones or adequate wi-fi connectivity and that means they can’t expand their knowledge about agriculture, health, finance, and the economic opportunities that would help lead them out of poverty. In partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Microsoft’s Airband Initiative to close the digital divide, and BLUETOWN, a Danish company that provides low-cost, sustainable wi-fi to connect the unconnected, The Hunger Project developed a program to provide this essential connectivity and information to over 6,000 women in three areas in Eastern Ghana.
Maize and beans are Tanzania’s staple crops and are an important source of nutrition and food security in the country. However, both are significantly affected by pests and diseases and can cause smallholder farms to lose their entire crops some years. Early identification and intervention can manage the problem, but few farmers were using software to identify diseases. Grow Further is developing a disease identification app and aims to reach 400,000 farmers within five years and 5 million farmers within 20 years through open-source software.
Future of Fish believes the digital world can give small-scale fishers the tools to improve their livelihoods much the way smart phones have provided similar benefits for smallholder farmers. With a cellphone, fishers can learn about best practices, collaborate with other fishers, access new markets, and build credit histories. In an age of data sharing, digitizing fishing resources could also help governments monitor fish stock to enhance sustainability and inclusivity in coastal fishing communities.
While these GlobalWA members focus on digital innovations and skills, many more focus on decent work more broadly. This includes organizations like Spreeha Foundation, which equips Bangladeshis with the skill sets necessary for the competitive job market through scholarship and apprenticeship; Awamaki, which trains Andean women artists to give them the technical skills and market access for a global audience; and Upaya Social Ventures, which runs the Dignified Jobs Accelerator and Collaborative that uses human-centered design principles to bring those living in extreme poverty into the global conversation about dignity and decent work.
Digital skills and access to modern digital tools have become increasingly paramount for today’s workforce. Vocational training, digital skills training, and job support provided by our member organizations are fostering a workforce of self-sufficient farmers, fishers, businessmen and businesswomen. The programs and interventions GlobalWA members are implementing in communities where they work are exemplifying a new standard and are setting a hopeful course for current and future generations.
The following additional GlobalWA members are providing quality training and economic development and support services through their programs in low- and middle-income countries where they work.
ACT for Congo
ACT for Congo supports innovative and integrated programs in North Kivu, DR Congo. Our partner AGIR’s goal is improving living conditions in DR Congo. AGIR’s integrated approach provides viable skills that enable the most vulnerable to support themselves and their families. It begins with assessment, mental stability, relationships in community and then vocational training, internships and small business, savings/credit associations. There is little employment, so training in fields that are in demand is important.
Since the volcanic eruption in May of 2021, AGIR_RDC has focused on internally displaced people. They’ve equipped three cohorts (476 people) with vocational skills that earned government issued certificates, while also addressing five waves of emergency displaced by violence around Goma and Beni.
Results of the third cohort in Goma and Beni:
- Literacy: 212 (9 men)
- Pastry: 10 (only offered once in Mugunga)
- Masonry: 49
- Professional Driving: 58
- Tailors: 100
- Culinary Arts: 12
- Esthetician/Barbers: 35
For more information see our websites: www.actforcongo.org and www.agirrdc.org
Pygmy Survival Alliance
Pygmy Survival Alliance (PSA) of Seattle, Washington supports the existential struggle of Batwa people in Rwanda, historically known as “Pygmies”. PSA follows an innovative, evidence-based model of functional empowerment that succeeds through enhancements in women’s leadership, education, and economic development. A critical aspect of this effort is to teach business and finance skills, support entrepreneurialism and create jobs. These efforts provide the foundation for people who live on an average of 22 cents per day (ten times below the WHO poverty level) to work their way to a sustainable future.
We promote business and finance skills through savings circles, microloans, and the formation of workers cooperatives for farmers, basket-makers, and performing artists.
We support entrepreneurialism by making markets for products of Batwa businesses, such as soap, pottery, wooden utensils and baskets; and by investing capital in promising micro ventures, such as electronics repair, sewing and weaving enterprises, and instrument making.
We create jobs by hiring and training villagers to work in the early childhood development center, porridge kitchen, hair salons and water utility business that we helped initiate; and by building infrastructure to sustain economic growth, including waterworks, hygiene facilities, rural electrification, streetlights, and housing.
These efforts have led to a dramatic reduction in poverty in our participating villages, thereby reducing childhood mortality and raising the status of women.
S M Sehgal Foundation
S M Sehgal Foundation drives positive social, economic, and environmental change in rural India in alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): 1 (NO POVERTY) and 8 (DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH). Our comprehensive programs to enhance food and water security provide resources and training to empower vulnerable populations, women and children in particular, to improve lives and achieve sustainable incomes. For over twenty-five years, our community-led development initiatives have reached more than 4.94 million people across 12 states, 64 districts, and 2,500 villages.
SDG 1-aligned programs promote improved agricultural practices and increase household incomes. Projects that empower women farmers include training as Pashu Sakhis (veterinary supports), goat framing, bee keeping, and use of oil expeller machines.
SDG 8-aligned programs facilitate skill development and entrepreneurship opportunities that foster economic growth and job creation in the agriculture sector and work with Farmer Producer Organizations and Women Farmers Groups. Digital and life skills awareness training programs connect rural communities with the global world to help bridge the gap between rural and urban education.
Strategic partnerships with donors and stakeholders create a sustainable and prosperous future for rural India, ensuring that no one is left behind in the journey toward economic and social empowerment.
Upaya Social Ventures
Upaya Social Ventures is a nonprofit organization building an inclusive economy by providing investment and support to early-stage businesses creating thousands of dignified jobs for people living in extreme poverty.
Upaya’s approach includes a pioneering model that pools together foundation grants in a fund from which to draw investments in early-stage social enterprises. Financial returns from these investments are returned back to the original donor with a capped premium of up to 5%. This unique structure lets one donation make an impact over and over again, and opens up investment in “missing middle” companies to funders who typically cannot make smaller single investments.
Upaya’s award-winning, impact-first investments seek out and support oft-overlooked companies creating work that is safe, stable, inclusive, and rewarding — generating a transformative impact on families, communities, and economies. Since its founding in 2011, Upaya’s portfolio companies have created over 42,000 dignified jobs across India.
Pangea Grant Partners
Solidarity Eden Foundation
The Solidarity Eden Foundation is a registered refugee youth-led organization, founded in 2015 in Kampala Uganda with the vision of caring, empowering, and inspiring refugee communities for a better tomorrow. Through the process, the SEF offers Language Development, Vocational Training, Community Psychosocial, and Creative Arts Programs to refugees from DR Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, and Somalia.
Ufanisi Women’s Group
Ufanisi Women’s Group (UWG) serves extremely poor, vulnerable rural women and girls in Bungoma County, Western Kenya. For the past several years, the group has been working toward building a sweet potato enhancement business, first by increasing farmer’s production of sweet potato vines, then by beginning to make enhanced products like chips, cookies, and pies. This year’s grant will support the group in taking the next steps by purchasing larger capacity equipment for production and storage, opening a sales stall in the nearest market town, and exploring other marketing opportunities.
Pangea Site Visit!
Planning is underway for a Pangea Site Visit to Guatemala that will take place in conjunction with the Central America Donors Forum in Antigua, October 7-9.
The site visit dates will be October 9-15 (approximately). The purpose of the site visit will be to visit our grant partner Taa Pit in San Pedro La Laguna, Lake Atitlan and to visit potential 2025 grant partners. Those who sign on to the site visit will help with organizing the trip and have a role when we travel together. If you are interested, please contact Betsy Hale, LA POD Chair.
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Organization Profile
Stronger Tomorrow: Integral Efforts by Microsoft to Build Digital Capacities and Technological Proficiency
By Aneesh Chatterjee
Learning to code; Nigeria. Photo: Desola Lanre-Ologun/Unsplash
In October, 2023, Microsoft partnered with M-PESA Africa in Nairobi to strengthen their efforts in digitizing small and medium-sized enterprises in various markets, and introducing businesses to digital skills training programs on the Microsoft Community Platform. Helping businesses become more comfortable with modern technologies and learning to use them may be the key to building resilience in rapidly transforming economies, and ensuring longevity and adaptability for enterprises of any scale. By partnering with local NGOs in targeted communities, Microsoft’s digital upskilling programs can be modified for a variety of local contexts, requirements, and problems – something that generative AI is becoming increasingly useful for.
Capacity-building for nonprofits across the world is a cornerstone priority for Microsoft, especially when it comes to closing the digital skills gap and allowing people and organizations the freedom, capabilities, and boosted efficiency brought on by emerging technologies. Their digital skills initiative came into full force at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, building the groundwork for long-term resilience in the wake of record unemployment rates across the world.
Today, Microsoft continues to engage with communities at the ground level through partnerships, provide access to powerful AI tools, and bolster the digital capacities of organizations at the front lines.
Global Washington spoke with Naria Santa Lucia, General Manager of Digital Inclusion at Microsoft Philanthropies, to learn more about their digital skilling enterprise.
Can you please introduce yourself and tell us about your role at Microsoft?
Sure, thanks! It’s great to be here. I really appreciate the invitation. I lead our Digital Inclusion work within Microsoft Philanthropies. That includes looking after our skilling work, how we engage with nonprofits and other international organizations to drive skilling at scale – especially in the digital, and now increasingly prevalent generative AI space – for people who may be left behind. We make sure they have the training and skills they need to embrace technology.
More broadly speaking, we have a three-part charter at Microsoft Philanthropies. The first is to help nonprofit organizations leverage and embrace technology so they can do their work effectively as agents of change. The second is the work that my team leads – the skilling space. Finally, we have a lot of work in employee engagement and disaster response – how we can help Microsoft employees give out their time, talent, and treasure to really make a difference.
Could you elaborate on employee engagement at Microsoft, particularly around digital scaling?
Absolutely. Employee engagement has been a core part of Microsoft’s DNA right from the beginning. We’ve set up different programs to ensure that people can give – and the company matches donations up to a certain amount. We’ve recently expanded that internationally to markets where it’s legally permissible, which has been very, very exciting. The giving of your dollar is really important to nonprofits. We really encourage every nonprofit to make sure they’re on our platform so they can be recipients of the generosity of our employees.
In addition to that, we really focus on helping people use their skills to volunteer. Two things in that area: we have a new program called Change Agents, which I think is very exciting. Essentially, it’s to help Microsoft employees who are getting involved with nonprofits. Whether it’s a board member or a volunteer, we arm all of our employees who want to be a Change Agent with information on how they can get free Microsoft technology products, skilling offers, how they can be a part of the Give Campaign – we’re almost like a concierge to a nonprofit. And then, obviously, the volunteering aspect is great. I’m a lawyer by training. So if there’s a way I want to get involved with a nonprofit to give legal aid advice, for example, I can get those hours matched with a donation to a nonprofit.
How do you define “digital inclusion” and why is this so important?
That’s a great question. Our mission at Microsoft is to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more. There is, of course, a business model that will drive enterprise customers to pay and access all these technologies. But to truly bring that mission to life, we need to think about extending to everyone the chance to be empowered. That’s where, I think, Philanthropies as an organization itself sits. We really try to extend Microsoft to every single community, especially those that may be at the margins or at risk of being left behind.
Digital inclusion in general can mean a lot of things – in the global context, you hear it a lot in the case of connectivity, skilling or capacity-building. In our team, we focus on the skilling aspect, but across Microsoft, we have teams that focus on broadband access and connectivity to skilling through devices. Bringing all those together are the three legs of the stool to broader digital inclusion.
Secondary school computer lab, Chennai, India. Photo: Haseeb Modi/Unsplash
I understand that your team has grown quite a bit in the last few years.
What I like is that it’s an interesting mix. In addition to the programmatic aspects of skilling, bringing content, data insights, certifications, thought leadership and connections for our nonprofit partners, we also have our field team that executes on the ground. We have Microsoft employees that act as Area Leads to bring that work into communities. We also have a footprint within the United States called TechSpark, and they help us figure out how to go into places where you may not think Microsoft would have a huge presence, like Cheyenne, Wyoming or Green Bay, Wisconsin – but we’re really trying to stand arm-in-arm with the community and help to skill and build a tech ecosystem.
What is Microsoft’s vision for the future of work?
We have a lot going on in this space. I’d just like to step back for a moment – one of the things that my team does is to help skill nonprofit organizations. There was a period, I would say two years ago, where we would really focus on digital skilling, because every job in the future would require some digital acumen. I think that’s become very true, especially for nonprofits. The biggest deflationary action is technology – to be able to save time and be more productive. With pressures on fundraising and other aspects, we need to think about how nonprofits and other organizations can be more efficient with the resources they have.
With the advent of generative AI, we’re now thinking about a future where every job requires generative AI fluency, lots of opportunities, and potentially disruptions caused by this new AI economy. We’ve already started to focus on that, and it will definitely be a focus in the future. We’re thinking about it in a couple of different ways. The first are the users – everyday workers, frontline workers, knowledge workers at developmental organizations, particularly nonprofits. We expect significant amount of productivity gains if we can help users themselves leverage generative AI.
Secondly, we’re thinking about developers. To have this AI economy, you need to have people who can continually build and develop language models in an equitable and unbiased way, and people who can develop tools and technologies using those models. For example, if you’re going to be in a country in the global south, you need data centers, you need electricity, but you also need developers and IT professionals who can build new tools and solutions.
Finally, we’ve been thinking a lot about how to help organizations embrace and adopt technologies responsibly. I don’t think we have done a lot on that in the past, because we focused more on introducing people to technologies and the skills they need. Not only do we need to teach people these skills and teach developers to build them, but organizations need to know how to embrace this. Organizations, right now, are grappling with what workloads can be made more productive with AI, what change management practices should be made, how they can do this responsibly and have good AI policy. Large enterprises, for-profit groups, will have lots of people on hand to advise and consult on that work – but I think there’s a huge opportunity for us to help nonprofits, especially the smaller to medium-sized ones, that may not have the ability to access that knowledge or guidance. Is there a way for Microsoft to help, and also involve the pro bono community as well?
Image created with openart.ai. Prompt: “painting of middle-aged African women on a farm looking at cellphones”
There’s a quote from the head of the Geneva Graduate Institute at Davos, two years ago I think, that said “AI won’t take your jobs. Somebody using AI will take your job.” Similarly for organizations, the ones that are able to be more productive, leverage technologies and do things more efficiently are the ones that will survive.
Nonprofits have a risk of being slow adopters. Also, we really need to push philanthropists and government funders to go and help nonprofits do this. Often, we’re pushing for programmatic project-based funding, but we don’t do enough to build the technological backbone. We don’t want nonprofits to miss the mark, because they are the front line, they know what communities need, they are the trusted groups.
Do you ever encounter suspicion of AI when you’re implementing it, where people are concerned with data security or government surveillance, for example?
We definitely do hear that. I think people should always approach things with that healthy skepticism. That’s why it’s really important that people have a sense of fluency in where data is going, what questions to ask, and what information is being provided. It’s important for us to educate people correctly. All of us need to be very aware of how we use these tools. People also need to understand that AI tools will have bias in them based on the available data that it’s trained on. In the global south, we often hear that people are worried about AI tools not being available in their native language, leading to them feeling excluded. As companies like Microsoft create these technologies, we need to understand how to use it responsibly.
I know that Microsoft calls their tool Copilot, and it really is a copilot in that respect – it isn’t going to take over the world.
I had a conversation with a friend of mine, who’s a teacher. She said she could tell immediately when a student had used Copilot or GhatGPT. We should never think of these as having perfect human qualities – these are tools like any other. It is a copilot – it’s a great first draft. When I first started practicing law, nobody ever wrote an original briefing. You always went into the briefing bank and built from there. That’s how I use AI – I’d ask it to write me a memo, for example, which I would then go in and edit. It saves a lot of time, and definitely gets you over that initial hump.
You touched on this a little bit, but can you talk more about specific programs where AI is empowering international learners?
I do really think that, as we are rolling out our new focus on generative AI, we’re going to build on the success of our previous programs and digital skilling, but where I’m most excited is learning how to use AI itself to upskill at scale. We’re going to train people on AI, but also use AI to do it.
We partnered with an organization called Data.org, and as their name implies, they’re a nonprofit that helps other nonprofits build up their data, AI, and machine learning capabilities. You and I were talking earlier about an organization in India, for example, which has troves of information written by hand. Data.org would help organizations like that to capture and leverage their data for additional programmatic outputs.
With Data.org, we launched a challenge: how can nonprofits use AI to skill and scale? There was an organization in India, for example, helping women, that had helped build a learning agent – a chatbot, essentially – that helped people train. We have a ton of content, but localizing that content is expensive and challenging. That’s one area where I’m really seeing generative AI help, at super-low costs. We can take our content in English, convert it to Swahili very quickly, and also add some local context to it for learners.
Young people, especially in the global south, are going to be the majority population. It’s an amazing opportunity to not only help them use generative AI in all fields, but train future developers. People who not only know the basics of computer science, but can use GitHub Copilot to code in natural language. Very excited about those opportunities.
What are some programs that you feel best represent the digital upskilling in international settings?
There’s one in Brazil that really illustrates how we do our work. We partner with a nonprofit organization that partners with the government of Brazil. It’s called the School of Workers. We just surpassed one million people trained on that platform. What I love about it is that it crossed administrations, because often, you’ll have uncooperative political parties. Bolsonaro had launched it with us, and Lula then took on the School of Workers, expanding and growing it. That’s a great testament to the power of us coming together with trusted nonprofits who partner with governments.
Another example that’s really indicative of how powerful generative AI can be is a group in India called Seeds, an organization that leverages AI to mitigate potential disasters. We’ve partnered with them to use our satellite imaging to map out, for example, a part in Delhi where you can tell by their roofing equipment in certain dwellings how much at-risk they are for heat waves. Then, Seeds would send out community workers on the ground, based on the data that we helped generate, to change the materials on those roofs.
How does Microsoft approach communities with programming where the resources, needs and jobs vary? Higher-income communities, for example, recognize digital skills as crucial and include that in their curriculum. Lower and middle-income countries are more concerned with building schools and getting people into classrooms first, for basic education. How does Microsoft engage those communities?
We would definitely always do things in partnerships. We do have content and resources for very basic digital skills, such as turning on a computer, all the way up to developing AI and everything in-between. There’s a great example where IOM – the UN organization for migration – visited a refugee settlement camp. It’s a tough place to be, and it would be ridiculous for Microsoft to come and say “we’ll teach you digital skills” when there’s no electricity. We know we can’t be everywhere in that capacity, but what we can do is help IOM itself, lower the cost of their operations, allow them more resources, space and time to actually go do their work in the field. We’re not going to be able to solve everything, but we can certainly build the capacities of organizations who are doing that work.
Secondly, on the skilling side, there are some people that my programs and my team can never help – and that’s okay. We need to understand where we can be most useful. We partnered with World Bank, for example, and gave them access to our digital content. They picked and chose what worked for them and have now started skilling people in Ethiopia.
Teenagers in Ghana learning computers. Photo CC by 2.0
We have a number of direct-to-learner offerings too. We have a number of free courses on LinkedIn available, including on generative AI, that result in a career essentials certificate. If you want to come and learn about Microsoft technologies, or how to be a software developer, we do have that free content. We just joined this group that helps skill women in Afghanistan. We are never going to be able to go directly to Afghanistan, but if we put this content out there and work through nonprofits to target specific people, they can go online to get the skills they need.
With everything that’s going on in the world – policies, politics, natural disasters, climate change – is there anything that’s really worrying Microsoft regarding these digital upskilling programs?
I would say, doing it as fast as we can, with as much scale as we can. I’d say that’s what keeps me up at night. It goes back to that theme where the inevitable is going to happen – every job is going to require AI fluency – and we don’t want to see another digital divide exacerbating the haves and have-nots. We’re thinking very much about how to do this at scale, just in time, so that people have access to the knowledge and content and learn the ability to leverage the technology.
What are you most hopeful for?
I definitely feel really hopeful for our kids these days, across the global south as well. The entrepreneurial nature – I feel like their energy is really different. They don’t have the same fears of earlier generations, they’re skeptical, which is what we need with the advent of these technologies. I also feel like they’ve been through so much. COVID, and the impacts of climate change. They’re super resilient. I do feel very excited in thinking about how the global development community can rally to help young people.
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In April, 2024, Microsoft announced a new chapter in their digital capacity-building initiatives: their commitment to the ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2025. By closing the gap in cybersecurity and AI skills, the project aims to bring technological fluency, skills training and long-term economic resilience to workforces across Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia – learning opportunities made available for up to 2.5 million people.
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Goalmaker
Ama Akuamoah, Director of Market Engagement, Digital Innovation Group, Opportunity International
“The economic empowerment of a woman is the economic empowerment of a family and the communities that make up a nation.”
This powerful observation was shared with me by Ama Akuamoah, the Director of Market Engagement for the Digital Innovation Group at Opportunity International. I was able to connect with her while she was in Malawi, having recently visited some final-mile project locations there. We had a wonderful conversation over Zoom. She was relaxed, perhaps a bit tired being that it was the end of her (busy) day, and had a wonderful, attentive demeanor, and an infectious smile!
“At Opportunity International,” Ama said, “I have the unique role of building both internal and external partnerships to expand digital products and services to develop economic pathways out of poverty and improve the livelihoods of clients in various markets that we operate in Africa, also in India and Indonesia.”
Among its myriad of services, including work in agriculture and education finance, Opportunity International designs, develops, and deploys different digital products to support their hardest to reach clients. Using a human-centered design approach, their Digital Innovation Group has produced varying interventions to support savings groups, train banking agents, and connect farmers to critical information—including AI-based products and services.
Ama shares, “‘The future is here but it’s not evenly distributed,’ a quote from William Gibson, resounds loudly in our organization.” In Ama’s over a decade’s experience that spans 4 continents, she observed that “while we see how technologies are abounding in different parts of the world, it’s not evenly distributed in the places that we work in, especially at the last mile. We want to ensure that innovation is relevant, accessible, and affordable for people who live in the poorest communities across the world. We particularly focus on women who unfortunately are often excluded from the benefits of innovation.”
Ama continued, “These last-mile clients face significant barriers such as poor infrastructure, limited access to financial services, underdeveloped markets, and service economy and for women this is compounded by gender-related social norms that limit their agency and upward mobility in life. To be able to do this work means that I’m getting to support these women, and that’s very exciting for me.”
Ama working with farmers in Nigeria. Photo: Opportunity International
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From a young age, Ama was heavily influenced by her mother to be strong, flexible, and to help others.
“She was, and is still, a force to reckon with,” Ama says with a big smile. “Single handedly raising three children, she exemplified for me resilience, how to pivot in any situation, and how to never allow anyone or anything to stand in your way. She epitomized for me what change being your constant was like because she went through different stages in her life and her career. But in all of it, she was still stoic.”
And with all that strength, Ama said, there was a soft, generous side, too, which heavily influenced Ama’s values.
“She will feed everybody and anyone, and now that I look back as well, people whose circumstances were not very different from ours, but who had hit hard times. She always found a way to help,” reflected Ama. “So, I believe that when I started working in advocacy for children’s rights, when I was around age 12, it was probably the natural progression from what I’ve seen happen in my in my home.”
She joined a group of young people in Ghana -the Curious Minds, “a platform working to ensure the inclusive participation of young people in the decision-making processes that affect their lives.” As part of this advocacy work, Ama represented Ghana as part of the children’s delegation to the first ever United Nations General Assembly Special Session for Children (UNGASS) in 2002. This first of a kind global gathering brought world leaders, and stakeholders with vested interests in promoting the wellbeing of young people on how to create a world fit for children. For Ama, interacting with other advocates like her from other countries left an indelible link on her perspective of the power of a connected world working in unison to solve the biggest challenges that face us all. Global development to her was a career choice. It was a natural progression “from being in a home where helping other people was exemplified for me through my mother,” to working now on a larger scale with a bigger impact.
Throughout her early professional years Ama had many mentors that pushed her in the direction of international development, from UNICEF where she interned during her gap year after secondary school before heading to university, to Al Jazeera English’s London office, “these mentors opened doors, believed in me, and pushed me in the direction of opportunities for career development. I am eternally grateful to them.”
Through these earlier job opportunities and embracing what she learned by example through her mother, she kept being reminded how when you empower a woman with economic opportunity, you empower a community. This is what brought her to work with Opportunity International.
“I saw how my mother and other traders in Makola Market pulled together and supported each other economically because formal financial services were not always accessible to them. To work with Opportunity International now to enhance access to formal financial services for so many of our clients who are female and in informal economic activities—this work is very important to me.
Ama also realizes the tapestry of her education, career path, and life experiences are privileges she does not take for granted. “And I believe that to whom much is given, much is expected. I don’t take my privilege for granted – that which I’ve been given in terms of my resources, my knowledge, my experiences, I deploy to serve others, so that none of it would be wasted.”
For Ama it has paid off, time and time again. Through the programs and technology Ama helps Opportunity International deploy, such as the digitization of Savings Groups, these women have more time on their hands to expand their businesses and support their families. It is this equitable distribution of technology that solves the pain point of so many that she hopes to make possible on a wider scale.
“To see the smile on our clients’ faces is pivotal for me,” she said with her own big smile. “Working with the digital innovations group and the wider Opportunity International colleagues, I’m very privileged to be able to put my skill set into making that happen, and also to see that kind of impact.”
*****
I asked Ama, what are one or two of the digital projects she is working on that she’s excited about?
“Oh, gosh! I could talk of so many initiatives happening across the wider Opportunity International organization! The current work on digitizing savings groups is one l am closely involved in together with other colleagues from the Agriculture Finance team.”
The savings groups she visited in Malawi had been restricted in what they could do as their ledgers were paper-based and therefore, among other challenges, Financial Service providers found it difficult to create linkages to support their activities or extend tailored services and products.
“Through a partnership with DreamStart Labs using their DreamSave app, we’re digitizing the ledger of the groups and for financial service providers (FSPs) the data from Dream Insights means they are to be able to see transactions of the group and understand better group operation. Analyzing this data, FSPs for example can extend credit to the group and support the expansion of the economic activities of the members.”
This builds history and trust, without the FSPs having to travel miles on either a weekly or fortnightly basis to these groups, which also reduces the operational costs. The savings groups can access mobile money, apply for and receive (and pay off) micro-loans, and inject more money into the group–all which helps these women improve their livelihoods and their communities.
Ama working with farmers in Nigeria. Photo: Opportunity International
Another initiative Ama is excited about is their Women as Agents of Change program in India.
Due to cultural and social norms, women did not feel comfortable accessing financial services from men – and the banking correspondent agents were almost entirely male. The Indian government, to improve access to finance for women, has supported a program to create bank sakhis – women who are trained as bank agents who are in rural areas to provide bank services to the last mile clients who are also women.
The Agents of Change program recruits and trains entrepreneurial women to become banking agents who work from small shops or offices and earn commissions on transactions. Equipped with tablets or smartphones to provide banking services to these hard-to-reach communities, this network of female banking agent connects rural women to financial services—and does so with remarkable success.
Ama elaborated, “In cultural contexts where women face social cultural barriers that hinder their access to formal finance, or view their savings are too small to bother walking long distances to deposit in a bank, having a female bank agent in their locality who can deploy such services becomes a lifeline to economic empowerment. Using AI, a chatbot is in the works to make the certification process easier for the women entrepreneurs, again built on the premise of saving them time and providing learning opportunities that fits around their busy schedules.
These sakhis also become a source of inspiration for other women. Women see the success of these women bank agents and say, “‘I can also take up this role,’ and they become entrepreneurs on their own, because these women then make their own money. They have built their businesses, and other women see them and say, I can also do this if this person has done this, so it’s very, very core to the work that we do.”
Lastly, Ama talked about Ulangizi, an AI-driven chatbot available via WhatsApp, “that we give to our Farmer Support Agents who are local small holder farmers we equip to support others in their community and provide extension services in their local language. Because it’s on WhatsApp, you can send photos and it tells you what sort of disease is affecting your crop, for example. It takes a limited service in most of these rural areas in terms of extension services, and it brings it right to the doorstep of the farmer. We have successfully piloted Ulangizi and look forward to scaling and replicating the tool in other countries and languages”
You can see a presentation about Ulangizi as recorded at our Goalmakers 2023 conference and presented by Paul Essene, Sr. Director, Product & Technology Innovation, Opportunity International: click this link and fast-forward to 9:25.
*****
We shifted our conversation to how there is so much happening in the world right now that affects local (and global) economies, such as climate change, shifting politics, and conflict, and I asked her how she felt about this.
“I believe that with every challenge comes on opportunity,” she said, “and I thank my mother for that [chuckle].”
And its people who give her the most hope: “Especially young people, and their passion to be the change they want to see.” In Africa she observes how young people are forging their paths for the future of the continent they want. “They are moving the needle to the best of their ability, utilizing diverse technology to impact their communities – one step at a time.”
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