The organisation: Since its foundation in 1968, the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) has encouraged the sharing, promotion and use of knowledge so that governments, professionals and organisations can better support poor men, women and children in developing countries to obtain water and sanitation services they will use and maintain.

The partnership: IRC was one of Akvo's founding partners and is committed to opening up its knowledge resources via the Akvopedia. Its team is actively working to develop Akvopedia, including structure, content and processes. It committed €35,000 of resource to Akvo during our second stage funding round in March 2008.

The organisation: The Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) is a policy institute whose diverse Stockholm-based, internationally-oriented programmes and activities contribute to finding sustainable solutions to the world’s escalating water crisis. SIWI manages projects, synthesises research and publishes findings and recommendations on current and future water, environment, governance and human development issues. It is also the organiser of World Water Week, one the water and sanitation development sector's most important annual conferences. SIWI encourages knowledge sharing and networking between the scientific, business, policy and civil society communities, building professional capacity and understanding of the links between water, society, environment and the economy.

The partnership: SIWI has been a consistent supporter of Akvo's efforts to promote its vision to the water and sanitation sector, particularly through the medium of Stockholm World Water Week. In addition to assistance in promoting our work, it has provided generous concessions to enable us to achieve a high profile on the international water stage during our early growth and fundraising phase.

The organisation: The UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education is an international institute for water education that was established in 2003. It carries out research, education and capacity building activities in the fields of water, environment and infrastructure. The Institute is the largest water education facility in the world, and the only institution in the UN system authorised to confer accredited MSc degrees.

The partnership: UNESCO-IHE is working with Akvo to engage the assistance of its global network of more than 13,000 alumni who today work actively on water and sanitation projects around the world. Our goals are to encourage editor contributions to the Akvopedia, and for Akvo Direct to provide a way for alumni to match their projects with funds. Akvo has also benefited from being located on UNESCO-IHE's Delft campus.