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Key POU Players Discuss Lessons Learned and Next Steps in Water Disinfection and Diarrhea Prevention/Treatment

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-sponsored meeting: Household Water Treatment: What Do We Know? How to Move Forward? was held November 5, 2010 at the Academy for Educational Development (AED) headquarters in Washington, D.C. Attendees, a mixture of water treatment experts, Point-Of-Use Water Disinfection and Zinc Treatment Project (POUZN) project implementers, and donors, came together to share lessons learned from the POUZN projects in several countries, to identify remaining challenges to sustainability and scaling up, and to discuss the way forward for ensuring safe drinking water in the home.

The Social Marketing Plus for Diarrheal Disease Control: Point-of-Use Water Disinfection and Zinc Treatment (POUZN) Project is a 5-year project funded by USAID. The goal of the POUZN program is to expand the use of point-of-use (POU) water disinfection and zinc products for the prevention and treatment of diarrhea through private sector channels. The POUZN project was implemented between 2005 and 2010 by the Academy for Educational Development and Abt Associates, Inc. in collaboration with Population Services International (PSI).

Panelists spoke on a variety of topics including challenges, priorities, and needed resources on the research and development front; strategies and results of POUZN projects—including both positive and negative outcomes; affecting lasting behavior change in regards to water and sanitation; and scaling up delivery and use of water purification products. Speakers presented perspectives from the private, donor, and NGO sectors which made for a well-rounded panel of presentations and provoked lively discussion between speakers and attendees.

Download the full meeting report (156 KB PDF).

Posted November 2010