Overview of the Challenge

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In Indonesia, where 57% of households reported climate-related disruptions, access to safely managed drinking water services remains critically low (30.5%). Private providers dominate the sector, yet affordability and regulatory barriers persist. Households spend 5.6% of income on WSS, well above affordability thresholds, while women face health risks from inadequate sanitation.

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The Ask

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Water.org sought to understand where and how its WaterCredit program could best fill financing and service delivery gaps. They needed regional/district-level evidence to guide household microfinance products, identify viable enterprise financing models, and recommend systemic reforms to enable scale.

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What We Did

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Athena Infonomics conducted the study to map vulnerabilities across West Java, South Sulawesi, and North Sumatra. Surveys revealed over-reliance on private desludging providers (82%), low financial product awareness (4%), and weak support for rural operators. District-level mapping showed localized risks from flooding and groundwater contamination. We also estimated financing demand of USD 314M for WSS MFI loans and 3.2M HHs for the WaterCredit Program.

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What to Expect

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Context-specific solutions included WaterCredit loans for household sanitation, decentralized treatment points, and awareness campaigns. We developed targeted and tailored country strategies combining Climate-Resilient WaterCredit, blended financing, terrain-friendly sanitation, decentralized water treatment, & financial literacy programs.

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Photo credit: The Independent

For more details on the project, read.

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