ACF International Network
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Action Against Hunger has developed its water and sanitation expertise over nearly three decades of field work, advancing a number of solutions for populations at risk from water insecurity.
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Central to the targeting of malnutrition, Action Against Hunger extends water and sanitation improvements to communities with little or no access to proper sources.
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Action Against Hunger's programs are sustainable because of our commitment to community participation—to build local capacity and harnesses a population's energy and resources.
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Though strategies may vary, our food security interventions all share a common goal: to fight hunger by preserving and strengthening livelihoods in a sustainable and contextual manner.
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Action Against Hunger’s innovative food security programs offer a broad range of solutions for generating income, boosting food production, and strengthening livelihoods.
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Our comprehensive approach to hunger involves extending water and sanitation services to communities faced with water scarcity, unsafe drinking water, and inadequate sanitation.
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Action Against Hunger occupies a unique place among international organizations: our expertise encompasses emergency relief, longer-term development, and the terrain in between.
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We have developed an effective method to treat acute malnutrition that includes field-tested protocols and nutritional products backed by an international scientific advisory committee.
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Action Against Hunger helps rehabilitate and restock public health infrastructure, fields mobile health clinics, and trains local medical personnel on preventative and diagnostic care.
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Our comprehensive programs address the linkages between disease and malnutrition by coordinating with local expertise and strengthening existing public health systems.
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Where We Work

Research: Water and Sanitation in Post-Emergency Contexts

Action against Hunger has carried out humanitarian programs in Sri Lanka since 1996, helping displaced communities and populations made vulnerable by the ongoing conflict. Immediately after the tsunami of December 26, 2004, Action against Hunger launched emergency operations, adding a new set of concerns to our pre-existing programs. Access to safe drinking water has been a major concern in post-tsunami Sri Lanka, given the widespread contamination of coastal water tables by a salt water from the tsunami’s tidal influx.

To refine and further develop our agency’s capacity to provide sustainable water and sanitation solutions for disaster-affected populations, Action against Hunger has established close working relationships with a number of institutions, such as the Institute for Research and Development, Pierre et Marie Curie University (Paris VI), the French Red Cross and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Such partnerships enhance Action Against Hunger’s already extensive water and sanitation expertise, ensuring a healthy sharing of models, methodologies, and approaches to water problems that combine cutting edge research from academia and our field programs.

The application of this research has proven successful in post-tsunami Sri Lanka: Action against Hunger’s teams have been able to improve and optimize the use of water resources for populations in need, a considerable achievement given the extent of aquifer contamination. Our programs have demonstrated the efficacy of geophysical methods such as “Time Domain Electro-Magnetism” (TDEM) which makes it possible to quickly identify where salt water intrusions have taken place. Our close collaboration with research institutes has certainly improved our technical capabilities in the field of water, sanitation and hygiene, enabling us to develop more than 100 water points in previously contaminated areas. Our investments in research and collaboration allows us to develop new techniques and applications in support of communities in dire need.

Hoareau J., People-Centered Approaches to Water and Environmental Sanitation, “The use of transient Electro-Magnetism methods to localize the saline water intrusion in coastal aquifers. A case study in Sri Lanka.” 32nd WEDC International Conference, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 2006.

Other achievements in the area of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

  • Production of an “Action against Hunger policy on water, sanitation and hygiene” defining our approach and standard position throughout the Action against Hunger International Network, and serving as a platform for the development of a technical strategy in this sector, 2006.
  • Revised publication of our agency’s definitive manual on emergency water and sanitation, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Populations at Risk, Editions Hermann, 2006.