Resilience through financial independence: enabling utilities to succeed
Water and sanitation utilities are facing the twin challenge of extending services to millions of urban customers whilst adapting to climate change. The Urban Water Catalyst Initiative (UWCI) promotes safe and reliable urban water and sanitation services through sustainable utility financing. It is our mission to support reform-minded utilities to forge a sustainable financing path towards realising their SDG 6 and 13 goals.
UWCI works with utility leaders looking to realise ambitious objectives
UWCI works with utilities from the Global South whose leadership are determined to achieve significant improvements in their operational and financial performance. Our partner utilities are fully committed to securing sustainable investments into water and sanitation infrastructure that is environmentally sound, climate resilient and socially inclusive. Their management and owners agree that moving towards financial independence is the way forward.
Our pragmatic, long-term assistance supports an effective and lasting utility turnaround
UWCI offers an integrated and carefully sequenced package of long-term technical and financial assistance tailored to each utility’s specific needs. Utilities gain access to technical expertise to drive performance improvements, tapping into extensive peer-to-peer support networks. Through its Turnaround Facility, UWCI enables quick urgently-needed investments in system improvements and recovery of operating costs to secure cash flows.
With rising performance comes creditworthiness and access to commercial loans for investment
Utilities are supported by UWCI to transform themselves into well-performing, financially sustainable service providers. This demonstrable turnaround enhances the credibility of utility leadership and hence creditworthiness of the business. UWCI aims for all partner utilities to establish themselves as sound investments in the eyes of commercial lenders and other financiers. This opens the door to local capital markets as an additional source of funding for vital investments.
UWCI unlocks a water-secure future by enabling utilities to succeed
The Urban Water Catalyst Initiative is founded on the premise that it is possible and beneficial for utilities to move towards self-financing, whilst extending services and building resilience, even in challenging contexts. We are breaking away from conventional project-based ‘thinking, doing and funding’ and the dependence on subsidies for utility operations that have been frustrating sector progress. Instead, UWCI partners and participating utilities focus on long-term strategic corporate development of the utility with a common goal: a water-secure future for all.
Partners
