Results from household ceramic filter evaluation in northern Ghana

This paper outlines Pure Home Water’s efforts to promote household drinking water treatment and safe storage (HWTS) products to low income customers in the Northern Region of Ghana and describes the research performed to improve upon PHW’s success. Epidemiological surveys and water quality testing were conducted in January 2006 and January 2007 in order to obtain baseline data on drinking water and sanitation practices and to evaluate the effectiveness of PHW’s program. It was found that traditional communities have a great need for access to improved water supplies, and PHW is effectively reaching these households by offering ceramic filters at a segmented market price and by managing several marketing campaigns. The surveys found that users are satisfied with the product. According to the water quality tests, the filters are performing well in the field; in traditional households, for example, E. coli removal rates averaged 99.7% when tested with membrane filtration

Constraints to microbial water quality testing

Microbial water quality testing is critical for the provision of safe drinking water, yet microbial testing activity is limited in much of the developing world. This briefing note provides insight into the status of microbial testing programs in developing countries and introduces the Monitoring for Safe Water Program, a study that will examine constraints to microbial water quality testing faced by water suppliers and surveillance agencies in sub-Saharan Africa

Follow up study to assess the use and performance of household water filters in Zambia

Effective household water treatment has the potential to improve drinking water quality and prevent diarrhoeal disease if used correctly and consistently over time. We previously conducted a randomized, controlled trial of water filters among households in Zambia with children under two years of HIV-positive mothers. One year after completion of the trial, we conducted a follow up study to assess use and performance the household filters. Ninety percent of participating households met the criteria for current users, and 75% had stored water with lower levels of faecal contamination than source water. Although this study provides some encouraging evidence about the potential to maintain HWTS use and performance, further research is necessary to assess whether these results can be achieved over longer periods and with larger populations

Toward a kinship perspective on entrepreneurship

This paper develops a theoretical framework for analyzing the role of kinship in entrepreneurship. Kinship, we argue, is a key-ingredient of the social and cultural environment of entrepreneurs, and therefore essential in understanding how and why entrepreneurship happens. Building on qualitative research conducted among Cambodian Chinese entrepreneurs in Phnom Penh, we define kinship as interpersonal ties grounded in relatedness. We distinguish different categories of kinship ties that involve different levels of relatedness and are used for different aspects of entrepreneurship, and we identify different types of reciprocity and trust as the sociocultural dynamics that buttress kinship involvement in entrepreneurship

Assessment of a low-cost, point-of-use, ultraviolet water disinfection technology.

We describe a point-of-use (POU) ultraviolet (UV) disinfection technology, the UV Tube, which can be made with locally available resources around the world for under $50 US. Laboratory and field studies were conducted to characterize the UV Tube's performance when treating a flowrate of 5 L/min. Based on biological assays with MS2 coliphage, the UV Tube delivered an average fluence of 900+/-80 J/m(2) (95% CI) in water with an absorption coefficient of 0.01 cm(-1). The residence time distribution in the UV Tube was characterized as plug flow with dispersion (Peclet Number = 19.7) and a mean hydraulic residence time of 36 s. Undesirable compounds were leached or produced from UV Tubes constructed with unlined ABS, PVC, or a galvanized steel liner. Lining the PVC pipe with stainless steel, however, prevented production of regulated halogenated organics. A small field study in two rural communities in Baja California Sur demonstrated that the UV Tube reduced E. coli concentrations to less than 1/100 ml in 65 out of 70 samples. Based on these results, we conclude that the UV Tube is a promising technology for treating household drinking water at the point of use