Sidian Bank has secured long-term funds worth Ksh564 million from WaterEquity for onward lending to the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sectors.
This partnership between WaterEquity and Sidian Bank is among the initiatives that can help to bridge the gap that exists in communities in Kenya where water and sanitation services are inaccessible for various reasons.
Improvement of these services will have a positive impact on the health and economic conditions of these communities especially now during the COVID 19 pandemic.
According to United Nations, today 2 billion people globally lack access to safely managed drinking water services and 3.6 billion people lack safely managed sanitation services. Unsafe hygiene practices are widespread, compounding the effects on people’s health.
In Kenya, about 59 per cent of the population has access to safe drinking water, which reflects the urgent need for access to clean water and related services.
“Ten per cent of the world’s population lacks access to safe water, and one fourth lacks access to a toilet,” said Paul O’Connell, President of WaterEquity. “The burden of this crisis falls disproportionately on women. We believe that capital markets offer the best way to increase access to safe water and sanitation, and we’re very pleased to support Sidian Bank and their constituents through our investments to further expand access in Kenya.”
Mr Chege Thumbi, CEO of Sidian Bank said “We believe this is only the beginning of a rewarding partnership that will see both organizations make a notable social impact on communities across Kenya. Our recent work with WASH loans has given us valuable insights into the dire need for financial access by micro and small enterprises and individuals in this sector.”
Sidian Bank has been at the forefront of developing solutions for the water and sanitation challenges in Kenya.
In August 2020, the bank launched the WASH Loan in partnership with Aqua For All, a Netherlands based organization in response to the Covid 19 pandemic.
Sidian Bank’s WASH loan portfolio has since seen tremendous growth, and in the process has attracted additional partners in the water, sanitation and hygiene space.
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