The organisation: A4A focuses on direct access for the poor in rural and peri-urban areas to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. It supports small and large scale water projects, initiated by local community-based organisations. The organisation is a strong proponent of appropriate technologies, helping develop promising low cost technologies in water exploration, treatment and storage.

The partnership: A stage 2 Akvo funder (€15,000), A4A has helped Akvo learn from its small projects team, so we can ensure our system provides the right information to make projects easier to match with funds.

The organisation: Arghyam is an Indian charitable foundation working in the water sector since 2005. Its mission is “Enough water, safe water ….. always and for all.” Arghyam seeks to support strategic and sustainable efforts in the water sector that address basic water needs for all citizens. It emphasises sustainability – environmental, financial, social and technical – as the key desirable outcomes in the projects it supports. Arghyam manages the India Water Portal, an open, inclusive, web-based platform for sharing water management knowledge amongst practitioners and the general public.

The partnership: Akvo and Arghyam share knowledge and best-practice related to the provision of internet-based resources to support water and sanitation development. Arghyam has helped the Akvo team experience first-hand the benefits of deploying appropriate technologies in India and we work closely to support each other's promotion activities and expansion globally.

The organisation: The International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) is a non-profit foundation that specialises in information and communication technology (ICT) as a tool for development. IICD creates practical and sustainable solutions using both modern media (such as computers, Internet, email and multimedia) and traditional media (such as radio and television) to connect people and enable them to benefit from ICT, thereby contributing to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Priority sectors include education, environment, governance, health and livelihoods (agriculture).

The partnership: IICD is identifying and introducing relevant projects to the Akvo matchmaking system and providing usability insight and feedback to the development team. Its executive director, Caroline Figueres, is a co-founder of Akvo and has provided invaluable support and guidance on our business plan and international network.

The organisation: Impulsis is a counter for Dutch private initiatives in development aid. It is a joint initiative of Edukans, ICCO, and Kerk in Actie. At Impulsis, foundations, schools, entrepeneurs and companies, associations, church organizations, etc, can receive support for their development projects. In addition to advice and financial support, they offer expertise, access to a broad network, and trainings.

The partnership: In 2009, Akvo and Impulsis started a long-term partnership in which all water and sanitation projects supported by Impulsis use the Akvo platform for fundraising and progress reporting.

The organisation: Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Live Earth is built upon the belief that entertainment has the power to transcend social and cultural barriers to move the world community to action. A for-profit company, Live Earth seeks to leverage the power of entertainment through integrated events, media, and the live experience to ignite a global movement aimed at solving the most critical environmental issues of our time.

The partnership: Live Earth and its partners will be using Akvo's project matchmaking and Really Simple Reporting (Akvo RSR) tools to support global engagement and fundraising during 2009 and 2010. Akvo is also helping Live Earth extend its partnerships across Europe and beyond as we work together to create an exciting new series of events in 2010.

The organisation: The Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP) is an independent body set up by the Dutch private and public sectors in the Netherlands to act as a national coordination and information centre for water-related issues abroad. Today it has 162 members. The principal aims of NWP are to harmonise the activities and initiatives of the Dutch water sector abroad and to promote Dutch expertise in water worldwide. NWP is the channel through which government bodies, NGOs, knowledge institutes and private organisations in the water sector share information on their activities and services.

The partnership: NWP ignited the Akvo phenomenon in autumn 2006 and has provided extensive financial and networking support to enable Akvo to research the sector, identify a focus for the project tools, and build partnerships with a wide range of organisations. Akvo shares it head office with NWP, where both organisations moved in during the autumn 2008 in the Hague.

The organisation: Simavi stimulates and supports projects aimed at improving the health of the poorest populations of rural Africa and Asia, without regard to race, religion or political creed. It supports initiatives in the field of primary healthcare, with particular concern for water and sanitation. Simavi operates as an intermediary between people in developing countries and its support base in the Netherlands within an evolving social context. It was founded as an independent aid organization by two medical doctors in 1925. The goal then was to support the work of medical missionary staff, thereby helping to improve the healthcare for the local population in its colonies. The organisation has evolved since then in response to changing circumstances to become one of the Netherlands' most highly regarded development partners.

The partnership: Simavi is a second-stage financial investor in Akvo, and committed €10,000 in March 2008. It has since contributed some of Akvo's first field projects and continues to provide critical comment and assistance as we refine the Akvo Marketplace and Akvo RSR modules to meet the needs of field-based NGO staff and international development coordinators.