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...
Pour changer les systèmes, il faut un «Conteur, un Expert et un Homme Politique». Histoires d'acteurs du changement au Malawi, au Honduras, en... Read more...
Para cambiar los sistemas se necesita un "narrador de historias, un experto y un político". Historias de agentes de cambio en Malawi, Honduras,... Read more...
It takes a 'Story Teller, an Expert, and a Politician' to make systems change happen. Stories from change makers in Malawi, Honduras, Uganda,... Read more...
Presentations from the WASH Learning Theme 3 - "Water resource management : finding systemic solutions" session of the All Systems Connect... Read more...
Presentations from the CONNECT Finance thematic track of the All Systems Connect International Symposium 2023. Read more...
The SMART market-based approach is contributing to SDG 6 and beyond. Its impact is significant, but localised. Read more...
Perceived poor performance of hand pumped boreholes has been a persistent problem in Africa Read more...
This case study highlights how an organisation can identify potential threats to institutional sustainability common in an extremely low resource... Read more...
Emerging lessons from the use of building blocks for sustainable un-sewered urban sanitation in sub-Saharan Africa. Read more...
Two letters in reaction to the article "Making a start with district health libraries" by Materia et al in World Health Forum, vol. 15, no. Read more...
This set of three papers arises from the 1993 water policy meeting. Read more...