IRC is an international think tank that works with governments, NGOs, entrepreneurs and people around the world to find long-term solutions to the global crisis in water, sanitation and hygiene services. Founded in 1968, IRC is a non-profit organisation registered since 1980 as a Foundation under Dutch Law. It has its headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands with country offices in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali and Uganda. In 2021, IRC had 130 staff members and 30 associates, and recorded a turnover of €8.7 million.
History
Early years
In December 1968, under an agreement of the World Health Organization and the Government of the Netherlands, the WHO International Reference Center on Community Water Supply was established (abbreviated as IRC). IRC was then an annex of the Government Institute of Drinking Water Supply. (Dutch: Rijksinstituut voor Drinkwatervoorziening, R.I.D, merged in RIVM in 1984). Apart from the relation with R.I.D, IRC established an advisory board that consisted of representatives of both national and international water supply sector organisations. In 1970, IRC drafted its first five-year plan with three main objectives: provide knowledge, coordinate research, and stimulate a systematic approach to solve problems in the drinking water supply industry. In 1972 IRC's chemical engineer B.C.J. Zoeteman concluded a three-year research on the practicality of iodine and iodine components' disinfection in small water supplies with a research report, which marked the initiation of IRC's Technical Paper (TP)series. In 1973, IRC held the "Bilthoven Meeting", joined by 31 international collaborating institutions. This meeting set working priorities for IRC such as developing appropriate water hygiene practices for better water supply quality. Consequently, follow-up projects were planned and initiated.
Gaining independence
In 1980, IRC became an independent foundation under the name International Reference Centre for Community Water Supply and Sanitation. (Abbreviated as IRC). In 1981, the IRC foundation was established through an Act of Dutch Parliament. Hans Van Damme became the Director of IRC, while Pier Santema became Chair of the newly constituted Governing Board. In the meantime, the United Nations launched the International Drinking Water Decade, 1981–90, which led to changes in the scope and strategies of IRC. Due to the UN's initiative, IRC's role in international WASH knowledge dissemination was strengthened. In 1981, IRC published one of its most popular books, Small Communities Water Supplies . Between 1983 and 1985, IRC published two major publications on Slow Sand Filtration. The one published in 1985 was further distributed to the WHO Regional Office for Europe and the WRC Research Centre. IRC introduced a focus on gender issues in water, hygiene and sanitation sectors and published several documents on this topic, led by the 1985 publication Participation of Women in Water Supply and Sanitation: Roles and Realities. From the 1980s onwards, IRC started to provide consulting and advisory services. In 1987, IRC undertook a number of assignments from DGIS, Commission of the European Economic Community, DANIDA, UNDP, World Bank, UNICEF and WHO. In 1988, IRC changed its name from "International Reference Centre for Community Water Supply and Sanitation" to "International Water and Sanitation Centre", the abbreviation "IRC" stayed the same however.
Years of change
In the foreword of IRC's 1991 annual report it says:
In 1990, at a consultation in New Delhi, IRC presented two hands-on experiences of WASH sector knowledge dissemination. During the 1991 Global Consultation on Safe Water and Sanitation for the 1990s held in New Delhi, "community management" was brought up and soon became one of the guiding principles in IRC's work. In the same year, IRC published its 28th technical paper, an approach to sustainable piped water supplies. By 1993, IRC possessed one of the "most comprehensive collections of low-cost water supply and sanitation literature" within the water sector.
In the 1990s, along with knowledge dissemination, IRC delivered advisory and evaluation services and training courses. In 1994, IRC delivered its training courses in English, French and Spanish at its headquarter in The Netherlands and other locations such as Kenya, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Colombia and India.
In 1996, after working for IRC for 27 years, Mr. Hans van Damme resigned from his position as director of IRC.