Uptime Catalyst Facility

Quick Stats

• Annual Giving: £795,453 (year ending 31 December 2022)
• Success Rate: Not publicly available
• Decision Time: Not publicly disclosed
• Grant Range: Results-based payments calculated on performance metrics
• Geographic Focus: International - 19 countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America

Contact Details

Address: Critchleys LLP, 23-38 Hythe Bridge Street, Oxford OX1 2EP

Phone: 01865 261100

Email: trustees@uptimecatalyst.org

Chair Contact: ggauthier@uptimecatalyst.org (Germain Gauthier, Trustee and Chair)

Website: https://www.uptimecatalyst.org/

Administrative Partner: Uptime Global (https://www.uptimewater.org/)

Overview

The Uptime Catalyst Facility (UCF) is a UK registered charity (1192062) established to pool and disburse results-based grant funding to contracted rural water service providers in developing countries. Founded as an innovative funding mechanism, the UCF currently contracts with 21 service providers across 19 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, supporting drinking water services for approximately 5 million rural people. The charity is governed by four trustees who serve pro-bono and convene monthly to review performance and strategy. Between 2020-2022, UCF disbursed over USD 1 million while growing from 4 to 7 African countries, supporting services for 1.5 million people at a cost of less than USD 1 per person annually. The facility represents an innovative approach to development funding, linking grant disbursements directly to verified service delivery outcomes rather than traditional input-based funding models.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programmes

Results-Based Funding for Rural Water Service Providers

The UCF operates a specialised results-based funding model that supplements user payments to rural water service providers. Grant disbursements are not fixed amounts but are calculated using a standardised payment formula based on performance against three key metrics (the “Uptime Framework”):

1. Reliability: Number of waterpoints with quarterly uptime >96%
2. Water Volume: Amount of water consumed/delivered
3. Local Revenue: Amount paid by users and institutions

Grants are designed to match a portion of local revenue and supplement user payments, conditional on achieving performance standards. Contracts between the UCF and service providers are administered by Uptime Global, an affiliated non-profit social enterprise.

Application Method: Invitation only / No public application process. Service providers are contracted through Uptime Global's assessment and selection process.

Priority Areas

• Rural drinking water service delivery in developing countries
• Sustainable water service models where users pay a share of costs
• Performance-based service provision
• Water infrastructure maintenance and reliability
• Service providers operating in challenging conditions across Africa, Asia, and Latin America
• Countries mentioned in partnerships include Mali, Burkina Faso, Nicaragua, Ghana, Uganda, and Kenya

What They Don't Fund

• Organisations or projects outside the rural water services sector
• Service providers not meeting performance verification requirements
• Urban water infrastructure
• One-off infrastructure projects without ongoing service delivery models
• Organisations not willing to report against standardised metrics
• Projects without local revenue generation/user payment components

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Governance and Leadership

The Uptime Catalyst Facility is governed by four Trustees who perform their duties on a pro-bono basis with no remuneration. The Trustees are:

• Prof Robert Adrian Hope - Professor of Water Policy at Oxford University with over 20 years of research and applied experience in Africa and Asia
• Germain Joseph Gauthier - Trustee and Chair; founding Trustee of Uptime Catalyst Facility; President of Résilience France and former Fund Manager and Secretary General of Infralion Capital Management
• Rachael Andrea McDonnell - Deputy Director General of Research for Development at the International Water Management Institute with more than 25 years' experience in developing knowledge and innovation for adaptation to climate extremes
• Regis Garandeau - Trustee

The Trustees have extensive experience in the water and development sectors and convene monthly to review performance, strategy, and outlook.

The charity operates with no employees and minimal administrative overhead, relying on Uptime Global to perform administrative and data management functions for results-based contracts.

Relationship with Uptime Global: Contracts between UCF and service providers are administered by Uptime Global, a UK Company Limited by Guarantee and non-profit social enterprise. Uptime Global handles contract development with service providers and verification of service performance data to facilitate UCF's funding disbursements.

How to Apply to Uptime Catalyst Facility

How to Apply

This funder does not have a public application process.

The Uptime Catalyst Facility does not accept unsolicited applications from organisations. Grant funding is distributed exclusively to rural water service providers that have been contracted through Uptime Global's selection and assessment process. Service providers are required to report against standardised metrics to qualify for results-based payments, and all data is subject to independent verification arranged by Uptime Global.

Organisations interested in results-based funding for rural water services should contact Uptime Global directly through their website (uptimewater.org) or email ggauthier@uptimecatalyst.org to inquire about potential partnership opportunities.

Decision Timeline

Not publicly disclosed. Decisions are made by the four-person Board of Trustees who meet monthly to review performance, strategy, and outlook. Grant disbursements are made quarterly based on verified performance data from contracted service providers.

Success Rates

Not publicly available. The facility expanded from partnerships with 4 service providers in 2020 to 21 service providers by 2024, suggesting selective but growing partnership development.

Application Success Factors

Since the UCF operates through contracted partnerships rather than open applications, success factors relate to the requirements for becoming a contracted service provider:

Performance Requirements:

• Ability to report against the three Uptime Framework metrics (reliability, water volume, local revenue)
• Quarterly waterpoint uptime >96% for reliability metric
• Willingness to submit to independent data verification
• Operating sustainable service models where users contribute financially
• Capacity to work in challenging rural conditions

Service Provider Profile:

• Established rural water service providers in developing countries
• Organisations operating in Africa, Asia, or Latin America
• Providers with existing infrastructure and service delivery operations
• Ability to demonstrate measurable service outcomes
• Commitment to standardised data collection and reporting

Strategic Alignment:

The UCF explicitly states their approach as “empirical” and “data-intensive,” suggesting they value evidence-based service delivery and transparent reporting. Their model supports services “where users pay a share of costs” rather than fully subsidised models, indicating preference for financially sustainable service approaches.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

• Not a traditional grant-maker: UCF operates a specialised results-based funding facility for contracted rural water service providers - it does not fund general development projects or UK-based organisations
• No public application process: Funding is distributed only through pre-existing contracts administered by Uptime Global
• International WASH sector only: Exclusively focused on rural drinking water services in developing countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America
• Performance-driven model: Grant disbursements are conditional on verified performance against the Uptime Framework metrics - this is not traditional grant funding
• Contact Uptime Global first: Organisations interested in this funding model should approach Uptime Global (uptimewater.org) rather than the UCF directly
• Efficient operation: With no employees and minimal administrative overhead, UCF operates as a funding conduit rather than a programme-managing foundation
• Innovative but niche: While UCF represents an innovative approach to development funding, it serves a very specific niche and is not relevant to most grant seekers

Similar Funders

These funders have a similar focus and geographic reach:

• Wateraid
• The Stone Family Foundation
• Wilmslow Wells For Africa
• Tanzania Development Trust
• The One Foundation
• The Kitchen Table Charities Trust
• Halcrow Foundation
• Blackfriars Overseas Aid Trust
• H C D Memorial Fund
• James Percy Foundation

References

• Charity Commission Register: “UPTIME CATALYST FACILITY - 1192062,” Charity Commission for England and Wales, https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search/-/charity-details/5165628/charity-overview
• Aqua for All: “Uptime Catalyst Facility: results-based funding for rural water maintenance services,” https://aquaforall.org/project/uptime-catalyst-facility-results-based-funding-for-rural-water-maintenance-services/
• Business Wire: “Uptime Expands Results-based Funding to Sustain Drinking Water for Over 4 Million Rural People Globally,” January 30, 2023, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230130005055/en/
• Stone Family Foundation: “Uptime Catalyst Facility,” https://www.thesff.com/portfolios/uptime-catalyst-facility/
• Uptime Global website: https://www.uptimewater.org/
• Uptime Catalyst Facility website: https://www.uptimecatalyst.org/