On World Water Day, PepsiCo’s philanthropic arm, the PepsiCo Foundation, and the international development organisation, BRAC announced the culmination of their project to provide clean water access to underserved communities in Bangladesh. As part of the initiative, local water entrepreneurs created water treatment plants providing communities with access to safe drinking water at an affordable price in the disaster-prone areas of Cox’s Bazar. The project has now successfully reached more than 13,000 community members and 1,200 underserved households with access to sustainable, affordable clean water.
The project was undertaken in Moheshkhali and Kutubdia, sub-districts of Bangladesh where many water sources have levels of arsenic and iron and communities are dependent on shallow wells and ponds, which provide an inadequate supply of safe water. Women and girls especially must travel long distances to collect water, which undermines their economic productivity and ability to stay in school. Through this community initiative, safe drinking water is delivered right to the doorstep of communities at an affordable price. The PepsiCo Foundation and BRAC also supported local groups to raise awareness about the importance of safe drinking water and handwashing to improve health and hygiene, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The PepsiCo Foundation has helped more than 68 million people gain access to safe water globally since 2006 and aims to reach 100 million people by 2030. Increasing access to safe water is part of PepsiCo’s pep+ agenda to deliver better outcomes for people and the planet, whilst enabling it to be a faster-growing and more resilient company.
