In New Delhi:
Minakshi Seth
Phone: +91 11 4111 1000
E-mail: mseth@ifc.org


New Delhi, India, February 17, 2009─IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is helping expand the availability of affordable, clean drinking water to about 3 million people in India by supporting WaterHealth India Private Limited, which provides water services to Indian villages.
 
IFC’s $15 million loan to WaterHealth India, a subsidiary of WaterHealth International, will help install more than 600 systems in villages in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra. The implementation of WaterHealth’s systems will help minimize toxic by-products from alternative water-purification methods like chlorination.

“To be able to provide clean water at affordable prices for households that earn less than $2 a day, we turned to IFC for long-term financing,” said Vikas Shah, Chief Operating Officer for WaterHealth India.

More than 25 percent of India’s population does not have access to clean drinking water. Unsafe water is often the cause for waterborne diseases such as cholera and diarrhea. As more villages are included, the WaterHealth project will have important health benefits as well as help generate local employment and provide training, which could significantly improve earnings for people in rural areas.

“This project, IFC’s first in India’s distributed water services sector, will provide access to clean drinking water for rural households,” said Paolo M. Martelli, IFC Director for South Asia. “Increasing access to affordable, safe water will have positive impacts on health and education.”

WaterHealth India has already installed systems in nearly 200 villages in Andhra Pradesh. Through its water centers, the company employs service operators, maintenance engineers, and other staff who engage with people from the village for services and train them on operating machines and collecting revenue.

To learn more about IFC’s activities in India, visit www.ifc.org/southasia.

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $16.2 billion in fiscal 2008, a 34 percent increase over the previous year. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

About WaterHealth International
WaterHealth International, Inc. provides innovative business solutions to address the needs of more than 2 billion people worldwide with little or no access to clean water. The company’s award-winning water-purification and disinfection technology helps mitigate one of the world’s most severe health challenges by enabling the delivery of affordable clean water to even the most remote and underserved communities. For more information, visit www.waterhealth.com.