Communities must provide people with the basic services and resources necessary to support family life and make commerce possible. IRD programs help communities develop effective social services through collaborative efforts to improve roads, renovate schools, rebuild utility, water and sewage systems, and establish health facilities.

	Strategic Provincial Roads in Afghanistan
	Improving up to 2,000 kilometers of gravel roads in Southern and Eastern Afghanistan
	Small Town and Rural Communities Water Restoration Project
	Constructing and rehabilitating water supply networks and sanitation facilities in villages in the Aceh province of Indonesia
	Hambantota Water Program in Sri Lanka
	Rebuilding water systems damaged by the tsunami
	Human Resources and Logistical Support (HRLS) program
	Oversight and support to USAID-funded reconstruction projects in Afghanistan
	Rapid Infrastructure Emergency Project
	Rebuilding clinics, schools, drains and sanitation systems in southern Sudan
	Iraq Cultural Heritage Program
	Restoring the glory of Iraq's ancient past
	Drought Mitigation through Community Management of Water Harvesting Systems
	Helping Swazi communities access water year around
	Improving Infrastructure on the West Bank
	Building and restoring roads, schools and water systems
	Bringing Clean Water to Kosovo
	Rehabilitating and upgrading water and sewage systems
	Rebuilding the Iraqi Electrical Grid
	Assisting the Iraqi Ministry of Electricity in providing power to Iraq
	Sheltering Families in Georgia
	Improving Housing Options After Conflict
	School Repair and Restoration Program
	Creating Safe Places for Children to Learn in Armenia
	Community Health and Education Services for Southern Sudan (CHESS)
	Helping Communities in Sudan Access Health Care and Education
	Serbia Youth Center
	Rebuilding a Belgrade Cultural Landmark
	Resettling Families in Nepal
	Expanding opportunities for people affected by conflict
	Helping Pakistani Families
	Providing water and sanitation for displaced people
	The Peri-Urban Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting (PROOF) Program
	Providing Clean Water in Zimbabwe
	Reducing the Risks from Natural Disasters
	Helping Southern Mozambique Prepare
	SCIP Program in Southern Mozambique
	Improving the Health of Children, Women and Families

Infrastructure is at the core of any long-term development solution. IRD works with local communities to address the needs of people while developing new strategies to ensure long term sustainability. For example, IRD’s drought mitigation projects in Mozambique and Swaziland work with schools to construct rainwater harvesting systems and provide hygiene education for communities. Farmers are also learning about conservation farming and tillage and runoff water farming techniques. With IRD’s assistance, the participating villages are able to increase water supplies during chronic periods of drought.

Addressing the needs of a disaster of a different kind, in the wake of the 2004 tsunami IRD constructed and rehabilitated water supply networks and sanitation facilities in villages in the Aceh province of Indonesia as well as the Lambaro Water Treatment Plant in Banda Aceh, which now provides 45 million liters of water per day to the city. IRD also trained local communities to implement cost recovery service delivery programs, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the newly constructed systems. UNICEF awarded IRD a follow-on project to bring water systems improvements to an additional 220,000 people.

In December 2007 IRD launched a large infrastructure program funded by USAID to improve up to 2,000 kilometers of gravel roads in Southern and Eastern Afghanistan. The project will increase stability and security by linking otherwise remote communities and requires extensive community outreach and participation. IRD is working with local engineering firms and NGOs to facilitate the implementation of these improvements. In addition, IRD’s Construction Trades Training Center program has provided Afghan participants with the necessary skills to secure employment in the construction trades.

In Sri Lanka, IRD is promoting a community-based, cost-effective way to disinfect drinking water through the solar water disinfection system, an easy way to reduce bacteria and reduce the occurrence of water-borne diseases. IRD completed the highly successful Community Revitalization through Democratic Action project in Montenegro and Serbia in 2007, upgrading more than 700 community facilities including solid waste systems, health centers, schools, community centers, irrigation systems, roads, tourist facilities, and playgrounds, benefiting nearly 1 million people. USAID granted an extension to the Serbia program to renovate the Belgrade Youth Center, a highly visible project in the heart of the capital. The National Campaign for Initiating, Sorting, and Recycling Municipal Solid Waste Project in Lebanon has helped start a nationwide recycling program. Funded by UNICEF, the project trained school teachers to encourage waste separation in schools and placed waste collection points and sorting supplies in 1,139 public schools.

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