Arghyam organised its Third Annual Conference as part of its ongoing commitment towards ensuring equitable access to safe water & sanitation through Strategic Grant-making. The conference titled “Are We Really Catalysing Change? Strategic Grant-making in the Water sector” was held on 27-28 June, 2008 at Hotel Clarks Exotica in Bangalore. The conference was inaugurated by Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, Union Minister of Panchayati Raj and was attended by 48 distinguished participants from funding agencies, corporate and private foundations, Govt., NGOs and Academic institutions.

The primary objective of the conference was to share & understand various approaches and strategies adopted by different donor agencies for maximizing the impact on the ground in the water sector. The Chief Guest mentioned about the bureaucratic inefficiency to reach the grassroots communities and emphasised the roles of Panchayati Raj Institutions, the vehicle for local governance. He also pressed on catalysing change through empowerment, entitlement and enrichment approach. The session speakers moderated the discussions quite innovatively, bringing together the rich experiences of the group. Overall, the conference brought out much clarity on strategic grant making in water sector and helped in understanding approaches of various actors in their respective areas of work. For more details, please read the conference proceedings.