Sanitation Financing Partnership Trust Fund under the Water Financing Partnership Facility

What is the fund?

On 25 July 2013, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation signed a channel financing agreement with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to establish the Sanitation Financing Partnership Trust Fund under the Water Financing Partnership Facility. The fund initially focused on innovative sanitation solutions to increase support for fecal sludge management through non-networked (non-sewered) sanitation and septage management. Since 2019, the focus has shifted to more holistic approach through the citywide inclusive sanitation framework to increase access to appropriate sanitation systems, whether sewered or non-sewered, centralized or decentralized, including the required support to increase knowledge and capacity and improve governance.

The fund continues to support ADB’s water operations from 2021 onwards guided by the Strategy 2030 Water Sector Directional Guide: A Water-Secure and Resilient Asia and the Pacific to deliver support in four areas of operational focus for the water sector: (i) water as a sustainable resource, (ii) universal and safe water services, (iii) productive use of water in agriculture and energy, and (iv) reduced climate change and water-related disaster risks.

Guiding the implementation of the Water Sector Directional Guide are five guiding principles for improving development outcomes: (i) building resilience and adaptive capacity, (ii) promoting inclusiveness and gender equality, (iii) embracing environmental sustainability and the circular economy, (iv) improving governance and catalyzing finance, and (v) fostering innovation and technological advancement.

What are the priorities?

The fund prioritizes activities designed to result in significantly more people with access to improved sanitation through projects that include the following:

• Non-networked (non-sewered) sanitation
• Fecal sludge management
• Citywide inclusive sanitation

What kind of activities are eligible for the fund?

The fund supports WFPF-eligible activities through two windows: project support and program quality support, delivered through the three pillars of the WFPF Results Framework 2021-2030 as follows:

• Project Support Window

  Pillar 1: Enhance Project Design and Implementation – providing sector and thematic analysis as a basis for improved project and program design; pilot testing promising innovations; catalyzing additional finance, including green funds and the private sector; creating incentives for bringing about change; and emphasizing resilience, inclusiveness, sustainability, good governance and innovation in project preparation and implementation.

• Program Quality Support Window

  Pillar 2: Strengthen Policies, Institutions and Regulations – focusing on support for enabling frameworks at country and regional levels that encourage good governance, including more effective and sustainable delivery of sanitation services; greater inclusiveness and equality in the targeting of benefits; and more extensive involvement of the private sector.

  Pillar 3: Develop Capacity and Manage Knowledge – creating capacity and upgrading skills of those responsible for delivering sanitation services; and initiating knowledge management programs to accompany and support change processes, based on long term partnerships and a systematic assessment of knowledge needs.

Who is eligible to receive the fund proceeds?

All ADB DMCs are eligible to receive support from the fund. Priority countries include Bangladesh, Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, People’s Republic of China, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, and Viet Nam. Other countries may be considered based on need, in consultation with the Foundation.

Who supports the fund?

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation supports the fund.

Where can I get more information?

Further information is available from the WFFP Secretariat.