SaWa - the safe, affordable, and scalable drinking water purification solution
MLC Voyager | Created by 4Life Solutions ApS
SaWa is a Solar Disinfection (SODIS) solution providing sustainable, affordable safe drinking water to the globally 2 Billion people without access to safe drinking water. SaWa removes +99.99% of bacteria, vira and protozoans after just 4 hours in sunlight. Each SaWa provides yearly sufficient safe drinking water to 2-3 persons for USD3, or USD1-2 if an innovative carbon credit-based business model is applied.
207,015 Lives Impacted
The SaWa technology allows for microbiologically sanitizing of drinking water only using sunlight. It supports the SDG6 and SDG 3 by providing the users with safe drinking water thereby reducing the risk of waterborne diseases (WBD) from unsafe drinking water.
Waterborne diseases may also origin from lack of hygiene and poor sanitation. In SaWa Programs, the number of households trained in SaWa, WASH, SODIS and environmental aspects is therefore considered a key indicator for success. Hence the direct key impact indicators of the SaWa technology and programs are:
1. NUMBER OF PEOPLE PROVIDED WITH SAWAS AND THEREBY ACCESS TO SAFE DRINKING WATER
2. SAFE DRINKING WATER VOLUME POTENTIAL
3. NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS TRAINED IN SAWA, SODIS, WASH AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
The SaWa Programs have been endorsed by several Governments and relevant Ministries, and may be combined with distribution through schools, thereby providing both children and families age- and curriculum-aligned training. At full roll out of the current SaWa Programs, more than 30 million people in low-income areas will be reached and provided with safe drinking water.
The Innovation
SaWa is an affordable solar disinfection solution (SODIS), only using solar rays for microbiologically sanitising water within 4 hours. SODIS solutions are considered necessary alternatives to accelerate the green transition in rural low-income areas, as a way to protect nature and avoid greenhouse gas emissions. The SaWa technology consists of a plastic container with unique food grade plastic polymer composition including both transparent and reflective layers, resulting in UV-A and UV-B light sanitising the drinking water. SaWa products are independent of chemicals, energy sources (except sunlight) and usable for all types of water as long as turbidity is below 90 Nephelometric Turbidity unit (NTU). The affordability, portability, efficiency, and usability, addresses the needs of the users, making drinking water safe and accessible for most people. SaWa products come in different sizes and are reusable for 1-3 years, equal to a yearly safe water production of up to 1,800 L per year for only a few US$. SaWa act both as a sanitising unit and a water storage tank.
SODIS solutions such as the SaWa are considered necessary alternatives to accelerate the green transition also in rural low-income areas. The alternatives to the SaWa technology consist of 1) No treatment, 2) chlorination and 3) boiling using fossil or bio based fuels. Despite chlorination of water being cheap, readily available, and easy-to-use, chlorination alters taste and odour and for many is considered undrinkable and unsafe. The SaWa technology does not alter taste and odour of water, and according to field studies is preferred over chlorination. Boiling of water is often the preferred treatment in rural areas. However, boiling requires access to and time and ability to fetch firewood or buy charcoal as well as sufficient cook stow facilities, which is rarely the case for people living below 5.5 USD/day. SaWa’s low costs overcome this access barrier.
Implemented in
Ghana, India, Kenya, Nigeria, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda
Get in touch
Jonas Pilgaard, CEO
About 4Life Solutions
4Life Solutions is a social enterprise, with the mission to bring safe and affordable drinking water to 1 billion people before 2030. The company has developed an affordable and portable water purification solution, SaWa, which uses only sunlight to remove +99,99% of pathogens within 4 hrs. As SaWas are locally produced, affordable, portable, and very easy to use, the SaWa programs have the potential to accelerate the alignment with SDG 6, thereby improving health and livelihoods of millions of people living in low-income communities.
