DuPont today announced that it is making an impact investment of $3M to increase access to safe water and sanitation. WaterEquity’s Global Access Fund IV, with $140M in investor commitments toward a goal of $150M, aims to reach 5 million people across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

The fund brings together collective treasury investments from corporate members of the Water Resilience Coalition– Starbucks (the Fund’s corporate anchor investor at $25 million), Ecolab, Gap Inc., Reckitt and DuPont – unlocking a $100 million commitment from U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

WaterEquity’s Global Access Fund IV addresses the global water and sanitation crisis in emerging markets by providing capital to financial institutions to enable them to scale their water and sanitation lending activities. Through small, affordable microloans, low-income consumers are empowered to install water or sanitation solutions within their homes—such as a water connection or toilet. By taking this step, the health and well-being of families can be transformed, allowing girls and women to pursue an education, and helping to pursue an equitable future for all. At a larger scale, the program seeks to drive economic growth, support healthy communities and ecosystems, enhance resilience to climate change, and promote gender equality.

“DuPont is making this high-impact investment because achieving universal water access is fundamental to solving the global water crisis and delivering value for society,” said Alexa Dembek, Chief Technology and Sustainability Officer, DuPont. “We are proud to join forces with other forward-thinking organizations as we align our water stewardship values to our investment strategies—empowering people to not only gain much-needed access to safe water and sanitation, but to all of the opportunities that access unlocks.”

Two billion people around the world currently live in water-stressed areas. Based on projected demand, if no action is taken, it is predicted the world will face a 40 per cent shortfall in freshwater supply within the next 10 years and, by 2050, more than half the world’s population will live in water-stressed areas.

“At DuPont, we envision a future where every human has daily access to safe, clean water. For millions around the world, within reach of their local utility water infrastructure, access to funds stands between them and safe water and sanitation in their home,’ said Alan Chan, Vice President and General Manager, DuPont Water Solutions. “We are grateful to organizations like WaterEquity for their innovation and leadership in catalyzing private investment through the global capital market to help close the financing gap that compounds the global water and sanitation crisis.”

The companies were brought together through the Water Resilience Coalition (WRC), a CEO-led initiative committed to reducing global water stress by 2050. Water Equity’s Global Access Fund IV is the first investment in the Coalition’s Investment Portfolio which plans to leverage a wide range of capital market investment instruments, including private equity investments, blended finance mechanisms, and impact bonds to drive investment into water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH); nature-based solutions; and water and climate resilience.

See the full joint announcement here.

About WaterEquity:
WaterEquity is the first asset manager exclusively focused on solving one of the most urgent issues of our time—the global water and sanitation crisis. We invest in financial institutions, enterprises, and infrastructure in emerging markets delivering access to safe water and sanitation to low-income communities, while offering an attractive risk-return profile to investors.

Founded by award-winning entrepreneurs Gary White and Matt Damon of Water.org and led by Paul O’Connell, the success of WaterEquity is built on decades of experience investing in water and sanitation in emerging markets, seeking social and financial returns.

About the Water Resilience Coalition:
The Water Resilience Coalition is an industry-driven, CEO-led initiative by the CEO Water Mandate,between the UN Global Compact and the Pacific Institute. It aims to elevate the long-term mounting crisis of global water stress and its connection to climate change to the top of the corporate agenda and to preserve the world’s freshwater resources through collective action in water-stressed basins and through ambitious, quantifiable goals. For more information, visit our website at ceowatermandate.org/resilience.