The lack of access to safe drinking water in some parts of the world often appears as a depressing and hopeless problem, but two companies are pioneering new approaches to this problem that give hope. In adapting existing technologies, innovating new solutions, and tapping into unutilized human resources, will Nazava Water Filters and Piramal Sarvajal change the current equilibrium of insufficient access to clean drinking water in Indonesia and India?

I. The Social Problem

In Indonesia, 33 million people do not have access to improved water sources [1]. But even a stark statistic such as this does not account for the true extent of the drinking water problem. Even improved water sources are often unsafe so whether people collect water through a tap, well, or spring, there is a high chance of contamination [2]. This is similar to rural areas and urban slums in India, where only 12% of households have

a connection to improved water.[3] This, compounded with the fact that fecal contamination of water is widespread in India, makes access to safe water a significant problem [4]. In fact, contaminated water is the second leading cause of the conditions that result in child mortality [5]. In India, this is painfully demonstrated by the deaths of 500,000 people from diarrhea every year [5]. Indonesia also has high levels of contaminated water sources, with 50,000 children dying from waterborne diseases in Indonesia every year [7]. In parts of Indonesia, the dangers of drinking unpurified water are known so people either buy purified water or boil it using liquid petroleum gas, wood, or kerosene [2]. However, buying water is expensive and inadequate boiling or storage of boiled water results in many cases of waterborne diseases [2]. With expensive and unreliable purification practices, the burden of collecting materials to boil water falls most heavily on women [2]. Additionally, this practice results in significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions [8]. The prevalence of boiling water is not the same in India. To begin to comprehend the lack of access to safe drinking water in India, it is important to understand that water there is theoretically a public good provided by the government free of charge [9]. In practice, however, this is not the case. The percentage of households in rural India with access to tap water ranges from 3% in Orissa, a state in eastern India, to 83% in Himachal, which is in northern India [6]. As a result of limited access, families have to collect untreated water and bring it back to their homes. Like in Indonesia, this burden falls on women and girls

disproportionately as only 13% of adult men in India collect water [10]. This not only results in less time for work and education for women, but also exposes them to a heightened risk of sexual violence [10]. In rural India, even when the pipes are running water is not distributed equitably in communities. One prominent factor in determining access to water is the caste system, with those of lower castes, especially the “untouchables,” having lower levels of access [12]. Although caste based discrimination is technically illegal in India now, de facto practices tend to be different. India, like Indonesia, is a large country and there are many vital cultural and geographic differences between villages. Cultural differences may include the status of women, the local government type, and the political structure [10]. Geographical differences between regions are also important because they determine the aggregate water availability. Compared to Indonesia, India is more densely populated with more heavily populated communities. The levels of knowledge about purification also varies between the countries, regions, and communities. Therefore, it is vital to respect not only the differences in geography, climate, and culture between India and Indonesia, but also those within the two countries.

II. The Opportunity

Lisa Heederik was living in Indonesia after the tsunami in 2007 when she experienced the burden of obtaining safe drinking water [14]. Originally from the Netherlands, she was used to clean tap water and was surprised that all Indonesians had to either buy or boil water for safe consumption

[14]. While visiting Brazil, Lisa noticed that many people used ceramic water filters, which were not used in Indonesia [7]. She first imported a ceramic water filter for herself [14]. In response, her neighbors and friends said that they wanted the product too. Seeing the opportunity to apply the existing technology of candle filters to address the need for a better way to filter water in Indonesia, she invested some of her savings to start Nazava [14]. Although some social enterprises, such as Sarvajal, use a community based approach, the isolation of villages in Indonesia and the manner in which they are dispersed on many islands led Lisa and the Nazava team to decide that household filtration would be more appropriate and effective [2]. Using the filter herself was an important step because it indicated that the ceramic water filter is a product that people want to use and would be willing to pay for [14]. With a background in development status and some experience in the water sector, Lisa was aware of the importance of the involvement of locals [14]. She did not want to sell a product developed in the west and shipped in, but rather one created for the specific needs of people on the many islands of Indonesia [14]. Grounded in the belief that everyone should have access to safe drinking water, Nazava made it its mission to “be Indonesia’s premier water filter company of safe and affordable water filters” [16].

In India, Anand Shah, the founder of Sarvajal, noticed how wealthy families were able to extract water from the piped systems using point of use filtration to provide safe drinking water and wondered if a similar principle could be applied to the millions of people in India without access to safe drinking water [3]. No stranger to impact-first organizations, Shah co-founded Indicorps and Teach for India and was involved in a handful of other organizations that operated in India [5][17]. What would develop into Sarvajal started as a single drinking water initiative under the Piramal Foundation [5]. This project, known as the Bagar Drinking Water Initiative, was conceived of by Shah and his Piramal employees with the goal of reducing contamination in the region [5]. After contemplating various strategies, Shah and the team settled on building a reverse osmosis machine in a single village in Rajasthan, northwest India [5]. The initial reports conveyed such a high level of demand and popularity that Anand Shah and the other members of the team decided to expand their stand alone project to a company of its own to explore the potential for market-based solutions [17]. In assembling the Sarvajal team, Shah utilized the skills and enthusiasm of professionals in a system he calls the “brain trust” [5]. This is a system in which mostly western educated professionals with fluency in local dialects and experience at various global firms join Sarvajal for stints of hands on work, utilizing their skills and business acumen [5]. With a team full of energy, resourceful skills, and a desire to make positive change, Sarvajal came up with the idea of selling the service of purifying water to villages at a price below all other purification options [3]. As Shah began the process of implementing this model he dwelt on the question, “Could we imagine a solution to ensure people at the last mile get water that is safe to drink in a way that works for them?” [3]

Both companies began by recognizing the opportunity for a market based solution for the lack of access to safe drinking water in their respective countries. While Nazava established that household filtration systems was the best model and Sarvajal decided to utilize the community based model, neither company knew the best way to have their desired effects. The models that both companies employ today only developed through trial and error, the process of which continues today.

III. The Approach

After seeing the problem and recognizing an opportunity for an entrepreneurial solution, Nazava and Sarvajal had to think about their desired new equilibrium in order to articulate a coherent theory of change. Lisa and the Nazava team envisions a better standard for access to clean water in Indonesia [19]. Sarvajal’s new equilibrium, by contrast, has two aspects. The first vision is universal access to safe drinking water [20]. It differs from Nazava, however, in also attempting to trigger, “a movement to create a people-owned water business on ground” [21]. As the companies progressed, they gained insights into their customer base and found their entrypoints in unique distribution models. Nazava utilizes a network of resellers and partnerships with NGOs, while Sarvajal engages in rural franchising. Nazava uses thier model to sell household purification system, whereas Sarvajal operates community based, pay-per-use filtration services. Adjusting their methods to bring about their desired impacts with the ultimate goal of equilibrium change, these two companies embarked on building their companies, which required innovations at various levels.