Anakot Thmei Water Kiosks in Cambodia

Cambodia

The Anakot Thmei project provides rural Cambodians with access to safe, affordable water while reducing pressure on forest resources.

Project

summary

In Cambodia, more than 6 million people lack access to safe drinking water because water infrastructures are either unavailable or not reliable enough to supply local households. Considering that 77% of Cambodians live in rural areas, water kiosks are an important decentralized solution.

Anakot Thmei constructs and operates community-based water kiosks, which are small-scale water purification and distribution units. The project aims to cover all regions through the construction of 300 water kiosks, mainly in rural areas. Purified water is conditioned in 20L jugs representing 2-3 days of consumption for a household and then distributed to around 750,000 beneficiaries at an affordable price.

Each water kiosk is operated by local micro-entrepreneurs through a franchise system and supported by 1001fontaines/Teuk Saat.

Certified

Under

Aligning with

the Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 1: No poverty

Price set at less than 3% of monthly household income for daily consumption of safe drinking water which is less than other means of purifying water such as boiling. In addition, the creation of sustainable local jobs to manage the water kiosks generates economic activity and regular income to working households

SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation

The Anakot Thmei project provides equitable access to clean affordable drinking water for all community members.

SDG 13: Take urgent action on climate change and its impacts

The water kiosks’ purifying system avoids a significant quantity of CO2 emissions: with the use of water kiosks’ solar-powered technology, less biomass will be used to boil water and therefore avoid the related greenhouse gas emissions.

The result

300 kiosks to be constructed, reaching 750,000 beneficiaries
Around 3 sustainable jobs created for each kiosk
Technical skills provided to local micro entrepreneurs managing the kiosks
Clean water at a reasonable price so that even the most vulnerable households can afford it (less than 3% of monthly income)
20L jugs covering 2 to 3 days of consumption of an average household
Water quality monitored monthly with support from 1001fontaines/TeukSaat, following WHO standards
Decrease in water related diseases