Chlorine Dispensers at Water Sources
Innovations for Poverty Action / Evidence Action · Western Kenya · 2007
Summary
The chlorine dispenser experiment found that placing chlorine at the point of collection — removing the step of transporting it home — raised uptake from 10% to 61% compared to household bottle distribution. The mechanism is action facilitation: making the desired behavior (treating water before carrying it home) the path of least resistance. The 26% reduction in child diarrhea incidence confirmed the health impact. Evidence Action scaled the program using this evidence and now reaches over 5 million people, making it one of the most successful scale-ups of a behavioral insight in global health.
Research question
"Can point-of-collection chlorine dispensers increase water treatment rates more than free chlorine bottle distribution?"
Methodology
Intervention
Chlorine dispensers installed at community water collection points (springs, wells); free chlorine available at point of use vs. free chlorine bottles distributed to households
Assignment
Randomized controlled trial (spring-level)
Sample size
140 springs; 12,000 households
Primary outcome
Chlorine uptake rate; household water chlorination; child diarrhea incidence
Effect estimate
Chlorine uptake: 61% vs. 10% for bottle distribution; diarrhea incidence: -26% in dispenser communities
Decision
Evidence Action scaled dispenser program to 5 million people across Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, and Zambia
Result
Positive
Chlorine uptake: 61% vs. 10% for bottle distribution; diarrhea incidence: -26% in dispenser communities
Evidence strength
Strong
Randomized trial, replicated across multiple sites or studies.
Replication status
Replicated
Institution
Innovations for Poverty Action / Evidence Action
Location
Western Kenya
Year
2007
Policy area
Public Health
Mechanism
Default