Technological Innovations for Rural Water Supply in Low-Resource Settings

This report provides an overview of water supply technologies that are innovative in either design or application (i.e., not yet commonplace) and promising (i.e., show potential for advantages exceeding the status quo) in rural areas such as small villages and dispersed settlements. It highlights categories of hightechnology concepts (i.e., advanced electronic devices, materials, and designs) that offer a greater range of options to decision-makers, donors, practitioners, and consumers who manage rural water supplies. The concepts may have sufficient merit to warrant further exploration and testing within later stages of REALWater or other implementation research programs; however, the REAL-Water consortium does not endorse or relatively rank specific providers of these technologies1 . Specific technology choices should be weighed relative to one’s local setting and context. Information is summarized to evaluate conditions and trends in rural water innovation, leading to overarching recommendations.