India’s rapid urbanization has resulted in overburdened infrastructure as the demand for safe water and sanitation increases. This problem, which disproportionately affects the urban poor, demands a sustainable solution. USAID has invested in urban water and sanitation activities across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East to address gaps in service provision but has seldom had an opportunity to explore whether their outcomes were sustained.
This brief summarizes key findings from an evaluation that examines the long-term outcomes of USAID’s Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion-Debt and Infrastructure (FIRE-D) activity seven years after its conclusion. The evaluation is the fourth in a series of independent ex-post evaluations of USAID water, sanitation, and hygiene activities to inform future USAID programming.