Stef Smits is a senior programme officer and Co-director of IRC's Growth Hub. He has 20 years of professional experience in water supply and sanitation in over 25 countries in Europe, Latin America, Southern Africa, and South Asia. His main thematic expertise includes: institutional models for water supply, sustainability and enabling environment, monitoring, costing and financing of services and integrated water resources management.
Stef has led numerous projects on these topics, and published about them. In addition, he has ample management expertise: from consultancy assignments to multi-annual programmes, and units within an organisation. He has worked for a range of clients including bilateral donors, development banks, research funders and NGOs. Stef holds an MSc degree in Irrigation and Water Engineering from Wageningen University, The Netherlands.
Despite reduced funding for market systems development (MSD) in sanitation, Water For People (WFP) has been able to grow and expand its approach. Read more...
Presentations from the WASH Learning Theme 2 - "Markets and behaviour change : how people invest and driving to scale" session of the All Systems... Read more...
Presentations from the WASH Learning theme 1 - Delivering Safe WASH Services session of the All Systems Connect International Symposium 2023. Read more...
The Transform WASH Activity in Ethiopia has significantly contributed to advancing market-based sanitation approaches and promoting gender equality... Read more...
The SMART market-based approach is contributing to SDG 6 and beyond. Its impact is significant, but localised. Read more...
Drawing from 10 years of experience, Insights into the various perspectives of partners, the different types of partnerships and the partnering... Read more...
Guidance and tools for designing, developing, planning, implementing and monitoring and evaluation of a market-based sanitation approach and related... Read more...
This report presents a theoretical cost-to-serve by Safe Water Enterprises (SWEs) for the estimated 3.8 billion people without safely treated water. Read more...
Developing viable business models to provide point-of-use safe water services to communities at the base of the pyramid (BoP). Read more...
How can blended finance can close the financial gap needed to meet Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6? Read more...
Addressing the financing challenges that result from the adoption of the water Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). Read more...
Countries should place greater priority on leveraging commercial finance into the sector while at the same time bolstering public funds. Read more...