Reaching Everyone with Clean Water in Ghana
Summary
In 2025, World Vision committed to provide clean water access to 700,000 people across 23 districts in Ghana by 2032. Building on a previous Clinton Global Initiative commitment and successful “finish the job” models in Zambia and Honduras, this initiative aims to eliminate water access gaps in rural Ghana. The program will use satellite data and GPS mapping to identify gaps and deliver sustainable, context-specific water solutions near homes, schools, and health care centers. In the first year, World Vision aims to reach 80,000 people, 40 schools, and 20 health centers. By the final year, more than 120,000 people will be served annually. The effort includes behavior-change programming to improve handwashing and sanitation, menstrual hygiene support, and local ownership through water committees. More than 350,000 women and girls will be directly empowered through reduced time collecting water, safer access, and inclusion in water governance. Progress will be tracked through more than 30 indicators, including the number of health care facilities with clean water, schools with handwashing stations, and businesses created through WASH improvements.
Approach
World Vision is committing to providing clean water access to 700,000 people across 23 districts in Ghana by 2032, including in 500 schools and 200 healthcare facilities. This initiative will use a data-driven approach to identify gaps in access, combining satellite imagery, machine learning, and field-led verification. Satellite images will help locate individual households in rural areas, and World Vision’s technical teams will map existing water points using GPS to ensure new sources are placed within a 30-minute round-trip of each home.
Thousands of water points will be mapped using the mWater platform, a mobile-based system that helps communities collect and analyze water data to guide decisions. The most sustainable solution, whether handpumps, solar-powered systems, or piped networks, will be installed. Women and girls will gain back hours each day, while community-led water committees ensure long-term ownership and impact.
Beyond infrastructure, World Vision will support hygiene and sanitation through a community-based “nurturing care group” model and behavior change education. In schools, efforts will include hygiene and menstrual health education, handwashing stations, and improved latrines. At healthcare facilities, World Vision will install direct water connections, handwashing stations, showers, mobility-accessible toilets, and proper waste management systems, including for hazardous waste. Facility staff will also be trained on infection prevention and hygiene protocols.
A key focus of the initiative is long-term sustainability. World Vision will work with local communities to build ownership of each water point and establish user fee collection systems to fund ongoing maintenance and repairs, ensuring that clean water access endures well beyond the life of the project.
Action Plan
World Vision will implement this commitment over seven years from 2025 to 2032. In the first year, World Vision will finalize baseline assessments using satellite data and ground-level surveys to refine the estimated number of households, schools, and healthcare facilities needing water access. By February 2026, targets will be set across 30 indicators, including those related to water access, sanitation, hygiene, gender equity, and sustainability, such as the number of water committees formed and the number of women trained in advocacy or supported in launching small businesses. Semiannual progress reports will track performance against these targets.
In 2025–2026, the goal is to reach 80,000 people with clean water, upgrade 40 schools, and improve water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) access in 20 healthcare facilities. From 2026 to 2031, World Vision aims to reach at least 100,000 people each year with clean water, upgrade 70 schools annually, and improve WASH in 30 healthcare facilities per year. In the final year, World Vision expects to reach over 120,000 people, completing its goal of reaching 700,000 people.
Throughout implementation, World Vision’s technical staff from the United States will collaborate closely with World Vision Ghana through monthly check-ins and periodic site visits. Each fiscal year will conclude with a detailed programmatic and financial review to evaluate progress and inform the next year’s plan. World Vision will also organize annual donor site visits to provide transparency, ensure accountability, and foster continued engagement.
By maintaining rigorous data collection, adaptive implementation, and strong community partnerships, World Vision will ensure that this effort not only meets quantitative targets but also delivers sustainable, community-owned solutions to clean water access and hygiene challenges across Ghana.
Background
World Vision is the leading nongovernmental provider of clean water in the developing world. Building on its successful 2024 Commitment to Action with CGI to reach 30 million people with clean water by 2030, World Vision is now expanding its “finish the job” approach.
This strategy focuses on achieving universal water access in specific countries where World Vision operates. In Zambia, the goal is to reach 1 million people by 2026; 87% of this target has already been met, with full funding secured. In Honduras, the aim is 650,000 people by 2028; 43% of that target has been reached, and $40 million of the $60 million needed has been raised. These results show that highly focused and fully funded efforts can accelerate water access.
Now, World Vision and its partners are committing to “finish the job” in Ghana. Of Ghana’s 34 million people, 4 million still lack access to a basic drinking water source. The WHO reports 25 water-related deaths per 100,000 people in Ghana due to unsafe water, poor sanitation, and inadequate hygiene (World Health Organization, 2025) .
World Vision has a long history in Ghana, having reached 1.5 million people with clean water since 1985 by installing over 4,000 water points. Today, it is prioritizing piped water systems, which deliver water closer to households and offer improved quality over traditional handpumps. The Government of Ghana recognizes World Vision as a key partner in achieving the country’s goal of universal water access.
With proven results in Zambia and Honduras, strong in-country partnerships, and demonstrated need, this new commitment aims to catalyze investment and action to bring lasting clean water access to every person in the communities World Vision serves in Ghana.
Progress Update
Partnership Opportunities
World Vision is seeking funding partners to help raise the remaining $59 million required to complete its clean water initiative across 23 districts in Ghana. To enhance impact and avoid duplication of efforts, World Vision also welcomes collaboration with implementation partners operating in the same geographic areas, particularly those focused on health, education, gender equity, and climate resilience. In addition, World Vision seeks engagement from media, advocacy, and research partners to amplify the story of community-led water access, document outcomes, and accelerate policy alignment and systems change at the national level.,World Vision will offer topic expertise, best practices, and data-driven insights to partners working in the water, sanitation, and hygiene sectors. Drawing on decades of experience and lessons learned from previous “finish the job” campaigns, World Vision will support peer organizations by sharing implementation models, behavior change methodologies, and sustainability strategies. Resources will be shared in response to direct requests and through sector-wide convenings, including the UNC Water and Health Conference and the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting. World Vision will also facilitate connections among community-based partners, government stakeholders, and donors to strengthen local ownership and cross-sector collaboration.