Impact Investment Review: Water Unite Impact Completes Exit From Sanivation
- Wellers Impact
- May 19
- 4 min read
Sanivation marks Water Unite Impact’s (WUI) first realised exit. As the first investee in 2021, Sanivation has been supported through the impact investment vehicle, managed by Wellers Impact, which provides risk-tolerant growth capital to scale innovative companies in the water and waste sectors.
Sanivation is a Kenyan-based sanitation company. Co-founded in 2014 by Andrew Foote and Emily Woods, their circular model deploys and manages treatment facilities that convert faecal sludge into low-carbon fuel. In partnership with municipalities, the company implements long-term sanitation solutions while developing treatment plants that process sludge from pit latrines and septic tanks into briquettes, a sustainable fuel source. Operations across East Africa reduce greenhouse gas emissions, strengthen climate-secure infrastructure, and have created over 180 direct local jobs since inception.
Catalytic capital from the fund de-risked and helped scale operations. Most importantly, it positioned Sanivation as bankable and enabled further expansion through commercial investment.
I. Impact Across All Areas
In January, PIDG's $3.3 million commitment into Sanivation marked a transition from catalytic to institutional capital — validating the original investment thesis. WUI acted as an early-mover to create the conditions for this commercial viability, stabilising operations at a point where traditional capital could not engage.
Neil Sandy, CEO of Wellers Impact commented:
"Sanivation's exit is significant not just for the fund, but for what it demonstrates about the sector. When we made this investment in 2021, the sanitation market in East Africa was chronically underfunded and largely considered uninvestable by commercial capital. Four years on, PIDG is investing into the same asset. This is proof that catalytic capital works."
During their growth phase, WUI strengthened Sanivation’s commercial integration and
increased its visibility with partners and investors. Multinational grocery and food
corporations — many of whom source from the Naivasha region, which exports over 25% to UK supermarkets — were introduced to Sanivation’s waste treatment plant. This illustrates how Water Unite, via Wellers Impact, can leverage its network to unlock corporate exposure to businesses in key sourcing regions.
In 2021, we invited Sanivation to present at our investor scale-up webinar. Shortly after, theywere engaged by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to lead technical assistance onsanitation across Africa, spotlighting their circular model as a force for sustainable energy.
Over the investment period, the partnership delivered measurable operational and climate outcomes:
6,203 tonnes of faecal sludge safely managed
3,421 tonnes of sustainable fuel briquettes sold
7,258 tonnes of CO2 eq offset
75,240 trees saved through the adoption of biomass fuels
II. Challenges During the Investment Period
Since 2000, sanitation access in Kenya has declined. Just 29% of Kenyans have access to basic sanitation¹. The sector continues to remain chronically underfunded. Investors tend to favour sectors perceived to offer more predictable returns and lower risk. A lack of consistent, commercial investment makes scaling rare.
For Sanivation, constraints were operational as much as structural. The company works closely with municipalities to implement sanitation systems, while its treatment facility in Naivasha converts waste into fuel for industrial use. USAID’s WASH-FIN programme had underpinned early technical development, before WUI’s investment in 2021. Withdrawal of that support tested operational resilience at a critical stage of growth.
Sanivation’s trajectory exemplifies the dynamics of the ‘missing middle': too mature for grant-funding, but not de-risked enough for commercial capital. WUI’s investment arrived at a point where growth would typically stall and operational pressures were acute.
COO of Sanivation, Emily Woods said:
"Water Unite's investment in 2021 was catalytic — it came at a point when we were trying to survive. That kind of early capital is what allows organisations like ours to reach the next stage and position ourselves for larger institutional funding."
III. Survival to Scale: Lessons From a First Exit
WUI's investment in Sanivation was structured as a debt facility for two reasons. Debt respected Sanivation's existing ownership structure, while providing the space needed to prove operational scalability. WUI received repayment for the loan earlier this year; the fund recycles that capital to support the next water, waste, or sanitation SME in a developing market.
WUI’s first exit, Sanivation, validates the original investment thesis and serves as concrete proof of concept. Catalytic capital did unlock commercial finance after de-risking a sustainable infrastructure business. After a $3.3 million equity investment from PIDG, work is underway to expand the Naivasha Treatment Plant to treat waste produced by 130,000 households. The impact of this partnership will continue to be influential for local employment, clean energy, and for investors monitoring the sector.
WUI remains active across its portfolio, deploying capital into water, sanitation and circular economy businesses.
¹UNICEF Kenya. (n.d.). Water, sanitation and hygiene.
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ABOUT WATER UNITE IMPACT
Water Unite Impact is an investment vehicle developed in partnership between nonprofit Water Unite and Wellers Impact, an FCA regulated impact investment manager, headquartered in London with an office in Nairobi, Kenya. Water Unite Impact invests into private sector water SMEs to transform lives and communities whilst generating risk-adjusted, market-rate returns for investors. waterunite.org/water-unite-impact
ABOUT WELLERS IMPACT
Wellers Impact is an FCA-regulated impact investment manager based in the UK. The team’s investment models are centred on using fair economics to pursue SDGs-aligned impact. Wellers Impact has three core business activities; real estate development in partnership with land-owning not-for-profits, provision of Sustainable Development Finance and Water Unite Impact. wellersimpact.com
ABOUT SANIVATION
Sanivation is a pioneering social enterprise providing clean, safe, and efficient sanitation services to urbanizing communities in low-income countries. Operating in Kenya since 2014, they partner with local governments to deliver comprehensive solutions from research and design through to implementation and monitoring. Their mission is to make cities across Africa clean, healthy, and productive through market-driven models that ensure lasting impact for people and their surroundings. sanivation.com
Wellers Impact is an impact investment manager. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an of er to sell, a solicitation of an of er to buy, or a recommendation of any security or any other product or service. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Impact investing involves risks, including the possible loss of principal. Wellers Impact is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
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