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Coca-Cola and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have expanded their collaboration to support new investments in Sustainable Water & Sanitation (WASH) Service Delivery in Africa.

The initiative, which is part of Water and Development Alliance (WADA), will provide improved clean water and/or improved sanitation services to more than 190,000 people by the end of 2015.

As part of the project, WADA will accelerate integrated approaches to clean water and sanitation service delivery in Africa where there are over 300 million people with lack of improved water source, while 630 million are without improved sanitation facilities.

To address these issues, the initiative will support the development of infrastructure for clean water, sanitation and hygiene education for schools, clean water kiosks for communities, and the installation of sanitation infrastructure in schools and health clinics.

USAID Administrator Dr Rajiv Shah said this important public-private partnership builds on the agency’s new and first-ever Water and Development Strategy to improve health and food security across the world.

"Its programs represent the next generation of this vital alliance–helping families lift themselves out of poverty and communities onto a path towards sustainable development," Shah added.

Coca-Cola chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent said that water stewardship is a key priority for the company and it is committed to returning the water it uses in beverages and their production back to communities.

"We are pleased to launch the next phase of impact with one of our longest standing and most valued partners, USAID. Expanding our work together will help bring safe water to thousands of people in communities we serve and continue to bring us closer to meeting our replenishment goal," Kent added.

Established in 2005, WADA is a collaboration between the Coca-Cola system and USAID to improve water resource management and expand access to improved drinking water and sanitation services for poor and marginalised people in developing countries.

To date, more than 374,000 people have been provided with improved water access in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Image: As part of its first wave of new investments, WADA will support integrated approaches to clean water and sanitation service delivery in Africa. Photo courtesy of Business Wire.