What St Paul Partners does

St Paul Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2002 that delivers sustainable safe-water infrastructure and health education to rural communities in the Iringa Region of Tanzania's Southern Highlands. Its beneficiary customers are rural villages, primary and secondary schools, and health facilities (e.g., Mawambala Primary, Mwanzi Primary, Igunda Primary, Lutangilo Secondary, Huruma Orphanage, Lukani Village, Mlangali Village) that lack reliable access to clean water.

The organization's core technical offering consists of four water-system categories: gravity-fed spring systems (protected natural springs feeding concrete-and-rebar spring boxes and settling tanks), deep-well systems with solar-powered pumps and storage tanks for off-grid sites, shallow-to-medium hand-pump wells typically co-located with schools, and dedicated school-well installations. Engineering design is provided at no direct cost through the University of Minnesota's "Design for Life: Water in Tanzania" course, which places undergraduate engineering teams in villages to develop site-specific solutions.

Revenue mechanics are entirely donation- and grant-driven (no commercial pricing). Sources include individual donors, the US Embassy in Tanzania, the Winter Wheat Foundation, approximately 70 Lutheran congregations paired with Iringa parishes through the Bega Kwa Bega (BKB) partnership with the Iringa Diocese of the ELCT, and the H2O for Life service-learning channel that funnels K-12 classroom fundraising into specific school-well projects. The organization is governed by an unpaid Minnesota-based volunteer board (with technical and engineering expertise supplied by UMN-affiliated directors) and operates field implementation through three paid Tanzanian staff based in Iringa, with office space and payroll services provided in-kind by the Iringa Diocese.

Name

St Paul Partners

Legal name

St Paul Partners

Website

https://stpaulpartners.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

St Paul Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2002 that installs gravity-fed springs, deep wells (including solar-powered), and hand-pump wells for rural villages, schools, and health facilities in Tanzania's Iringa Region, funded by donations, church partnerships, and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clean Water Infrastructure Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (8134), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public–Private Partnerships (PPPs) for Global Health (HLAJAOAD)

Keywords

• Clean water access
• Water well drilling
• Nonprofit water projects
• Community water systems
• WASH education

Headquarters

HQ city

Lake Elmo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, St Paul Partners generates revenue through charitable donations from individuals, churches, and foundations. Funding comes from partner congregations, the US Embassy in Tanzania, private donors, and organizations like the Winter Wheat Foundation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

St Paul Partners is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that designs and implements sustainable safe water infrastructure in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania, including gravity-fed spring systems, deep wells with solar-powered pumps, and hand pump wells for rural villages, schools, and dispensaries. The organization complements infrastructure delivery with community WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) health education and partners with the University of Minnesota Design for Life engineering program for project design.

Product overview

St Paul Partners is a nonprofit organization providing sustainable safe water infrastructure and health education in Tanzania. The organization operates four core water system types: Gravity Fed Spring Systems (natural spring development with gravity distribution), Deep Well Systems (powered pump installations with storage), Hand Pump Well Systems (shallow manual wells), and School Well Projects (wells specifically serving educational institutions). These projects are implemented in partnership with local communities, with support from organizations like H2O for Life, and engineering design from the University of Minnesota's Design for Life program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gravity Fed Spring Water Systems Natural spring development projects that use gravity to feed water from a protected spring source to a storage tank for village distribution through multiple access points, serving rural Tanzanian communities.
• Deep Well Systems Deep wells with powered pumps (solar or electric) that provide water access for villages, schools, and dispensaries, often including storage tanks and distribution networks for areas not connected to the electric grid.
• Hand Pump Well Systems Shallow or medium-depth wells equipped with hand pumps for manual water extraction, typically serving schools and rural communities with limited infrastructure access.
• School Well Projects Water well installations specifically designed for educational institutions, providing students and staff with reliable access to clean water directly on school grounds in Tanzania.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 145 water projects completed since 2003
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• H2O for LifecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2016H2O for Life is a nonprofit offering service-learning opportunities that engage youth to raise awareness and funds for water projects. They present projects to school classrooms to raise funds which are matched by St Paul Partners. This partnership has implemented multiple school well projects across Tanzania including Isakalilo Primary School, Igunda Primary School, Nyanzwa Primary School, and many others.
• University of Minnesota - Design for Life ClasscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002The College of Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota conducts the 'Design for Life: Water in Tanzania' class bringing engineering students to Tanzania to design water projects. Students spend several days in villages assessing situations and developing solutions. The program has been running since 2014 and enters its seventh year by 2020. St Paul Partners provides support and implementation for student-designed projects.
• Iringa Diocese of the Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002St Paul Partners grew out of the Bega Kwa Bega partnership between St Paul Area Synod of the ELCA and the Iringa Diocese. SPP rents office space from the Diocese and they help manage payroll. Many projects solve water needs in villages paired with American congregations through this partnership.
• Bega Kwa Bega (BKB) PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Bega Kwa Bega (Shoulder to Shoulder in Swahili) partnership pairs about 70 congregations in America with parishes in Iringa Region of Tanzania. Many SPP projects address water needs in partnered villages with financial support from these congregations.
• Friends of HurumaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPastor Chris Smith from Friends of Huruma reached out to St Paul Partners to co-fund a new deep well for the Huruma Orphanage after their original well ran dry.
• St. Paul Area Synod of the ELCAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe companion relationship between St Paul Area Synod of the ELCA and the Iringa Diocese of the Lutheran Church in Tanzania gave rise to St Paul Partners and the Bega Kwa Bega partnership.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• H2O for Life: H2O for Life is a service-learning nonprofit that engages US schools to raise funds for water projects in developing countries, including Tanzania. It is already a direct partner of St Paul Partners and shares the same donor-acquisition and beneficiary-delivery model.
• Lifewater International: Lifewater International is a Christian nonprofit that drills wells and implements WASH programs in rural Africa and Asia. It shares St Paul Partners' faith-based DNA and project-based rural water infrastructure delivery.
• charity: water: charity: water funds and builds clean water infrastructure in developing countries, with a similar donation-driven nonprofit model and project-based execution. It is the most prominent direct WASH peer and competes for the same donor mindshare.
• Blood:Water: Blood:Water is a nonprofit that partners with African organizations to deliver clean water and HIV/AIDS response. Its partner-driven African WASH delivery model closely parallels St Paul Partners' local-partner approach in Tanzania.
• The Water Project: The Water Project is a nonprofit that builds and maintains sustainable water projects in sub-Saharan Africa, including Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. It is highly comparable in scope (community wells, springs, rain catchment) and beneficiary model.

Others

• Engineers Without Borders USA: Engineers Without Borders USA mobilizes engineering students and professionals to design and implement infrastructure projects in developing countries. Its student-engineering volunteer model is structurally similar to St Paul Partners' UMN Design for Life pipeline, though it spans multiple engineering disciplines beyond water.

Emerging players

• DigDeep: DigDeep is a US-based nonprofit focused on water access, including domestic and Navajo Nation work and international projects. It is an emerging peer with a similar grassroots-to-grantmaker WASH focus.
• Wine To Water: Wine To Water is a smaller WASH nonprofit drilling wells and providing filtration in developing countries. It is a smaller-scale direct peer with similar community water-infrastructure delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Water.org: Water.org is a global WASH nonprofit (founded by Matt Damon and Gary White) that uses market-based financing for water and sanitation access. It overlaps mission-wise with St Paul Partners but operates at materially larger scale with different funding mechanisms.
• WaterAid: WaterAid is a large international NGO focused on WASH across multiple African and Asian countries with institutional donor funding. It is a much larger incumbent operating in the same WASH space as St Paul Partners but at a global scale.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC7wEFH40iZ5EZdQN2nGCpgw
• Facebookfacebook.com/Saint.Paul.Partners
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/st-paul-partners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about St Paul Partners