Accelerating Progress to Achieve Universal Access to Safe Water
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Board of directors approved $29.3 million in grants, including Program-Related Investments, in the fourth quarter of 2023, bringing our year-end grantmaking payout to $290 million.
Our Safe Water initiative awarded $36.3 million in grants in 2023, representing the largest financial commitment to a single program area within the fiscal year. More than two billion people still lack access to safely managed drinking water worldwide. This presents a significant setback in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.1: universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water by 2030.
The Safe Water initiative invests in professional, sustainable and affordable solutions for safe water services by working with communities, civil society, donors, local and national governments and private sector partners in Ethiopia, Ghana and Uganda. The initiative invests in technology, capacity building, financing solutions and regulatory frameworks to sustain quality water services for one million people in low-income households, schools and healthcare facilities in sub-Saharan Africa by 2025.
Following is an overview of our board-approved grants and Program-Related Investments (PRIs) awarded in the fourth quarter of 2023:
Catholic Sisters – Dicastery for Communication received $1.8 million to support reporting and documenting Catholic Sisters’ stories and ministries through the Vatican’s Dicastery of Communication Networks – PHASE II. Association of Sisterhoods of Kenya Registered Trustees was awarded $1.6 million to expand the Sister-led Youth Empowerment Initiative in Kenya and build the capacity of disadvantaged and vulnerable youth aged 15-25 to become self-sufficient – PHASE II.
Early Childhood Development – United States – New Mexico Community Foundation received $2.35 million to improve the outcomes of young children in New Mexico by funding a cohort of policy and advocacy focused organizations that will elevate the needs of children prenatal to age three. CCF Community Initiatives Fund was awarded $1.63 million for the LA Partnership for Early Childhood Investment, a project of CCF Community Initiatives Fund, to strengthen systems of support for vulnerable families in LA County.
Foster Youth – United Way of Greater Atlanta Inc. received $2.15 million to build capacity of child welfare advocacy infrastructure in Georgia.
Homelessness – CCF Community Initiatives Fund was awarded $3 million for the LA 4 LA Fund, a project of the CCF Community Initiatives Fund, to accelerate the pace of housing development for people experiencing homelessness.
Safe Water – Uptime Catalyst Facility received $5 million to scale-up performance-based contracting for safe water service delivery to five million people and influence regional and global financing of rural water services. World Vision was awarded $4.75 million to extend the Safe Water Enterprise model in Ghana to new systems in Asutifi North, expand service delivery to Asunafo North, and co-design and pilot a municipal drinking water sustainability fund for the rural water sector. WSUP Advisory CIC received $4 million to continue supporting the Mid western Umbrella to deliver sustainable safe water services to underserved rural populations and advocate for a national enabling environment for sustainable and equitable safe water.
Program-Related Investments for Early Childhood Development – United States – Low Income Investment Fund was approved for a loan of $3 million to finance the development of early childhood education facilities, focusing on facilities co-located in affordable housing in Los Angeles and New Mexico.
To learn more about our program areas and how we approach our work, please visit hiltonfoundation.org/program-areas. For more detailed information on our grantmaking, please visit hiltonfoundation.org/grants.