Clean Water, Transformed Lives: The P&G Children's Safe Drinking Water Program

We’re committed to making peoples’ lives better in small but meaningful ways, every day. Water is a simple necessity, yet a staggering 2 billion people worldwide lack access to clean drinking water, limiting the ability for families and communities to thrive. That's why, for over 20 years, we've been committed to providing clean water to children and families in need through the P&G Children's Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) Program.

The P&G CSDW Program has helped keep children and families healthy, enabled educational opportunities and helped communities grow around the world. Built on innovative science and strong partnerships, the program has already delivered over 23 billion liters of clean water to 100 countries.

Learn more about the program’s impact and how you can help us reach our goal of 25 billion liters in 2025.

Providing Access: The Power of a Water Treatment Plant in a Packet

The heart of the CSDW Program is the P&G Purifier of Water packet, a remarkable innovation developed by P&G scientist Dr. Phil Souter. Following a trip to Southeast Asia, where he saw children without access to clean drinking water, Dr. Souter was inspired to apply P&G’s superior Fabric Care cleaning technology to help create a solution.

This simple, yet powerful, 4-gram packet transforms contaminated water into clean drinking water in just 30 minutes using only a bucket, a spoon and a cloth. Imagine the impact: the power of a water treatment plant, readily available in a packet small enough to fit in your hand. This innovation empowers families to live healthier lives by reducing incidences of waterborne illness.

This innovation wouldn't reach those who need it most without the help of our partners. Keep reading for more stories about how the power of partnership enables the CSDW Program to make a lasting impact on communities around the world.

Educating the Next Generation of Water Champions

Access to clean water and education go hand in hand. When children have fewer incidences of waterborne illnesses or spend less time collecting water, they can attend school, learn and grow. The CSDW Program, in partnership with organizations like CARE and Save the Children, empowers children with knowledge about hygiene and water purification, creating a ripple effect of positive change within their communities.

Take Bonface, for example. Inspired by lessons from CARE Kenya while in primary school in Bondo, a rural region near Kenya’s Lake Victoria, this young Water Champion began educating his classmates at just 13 years old as elected chair of his school’s health club. Now 23 years old, Bonface continues to champion clean water in his community, demonstrating the lasting impact of education.

Creating Positive Change for Women and Girls

Around the world, the responsibility for household water management disproportionately falls on women and girls, often preventing them from pursuing education and economic opportunities. The CSDW Program helps alleviate this burden, empowering women and girls to reach their full potential.

In Malaka, Indonesia, our partnership with ChildFund Indonesia helped transform Veronika’s life. As a high school student, Veronika spent hours collecting and boiling contaminated water each day, leaving little time for her studies. Discovering the CSDW Program was a turning point. The clean water from the P&G Purifier of Water packets helped alleviate her stomach aches, leaving more time to focus on her education, and the chance to build meaningful friendships. With access to clean water, Veronika focused on her studies and became a Water Champion, educating her community on the importance of clean water and hygiene.

Veronika's story spotlights how access to clean water can empower women and girls, uplifting entire communities and fostering the next generation of leaders and innovators.

Making a Global Impact with Partners

This innovation wouldn't reach those who need it most without the help of our partners — like CARE, ChildFund International, Save the Children, and World Vision — that work tirelessly to distribute these packets to communities in need around the world, ensuring access to clean water where it's needed most. Events like Global Citizen Festival help us raise awareness about the transformative power of clean water, driving support for the program all around the world.

Over its 20-year history, the CSDW Program has partnered with over 150 organizations worldwide, leveraging their expertise and on-the-ground presence to deliver clean water to more than 100 countries. These partnerships allow us to reach even the most remote communities and make life-changing impact.

Together, we're on a mission to deliver 25 billion liters of clean water by 2025, and we need your help. Become a P&G Water Champion and join us in bringing the transformative power of clean water to even more children and families.

Hear more from our Water Champions and discover how you can get involved.

Together, we can create a better, healthier future for more children and families around the world.