What Aguaconsult Ltd. does

Aguaconsult Ltd. is a UK-based, employee-owned consulting firm headquartered in Wivenhoe, Colchester, that has provided water, sanitation and environmental (WASH) advisory services to organisations operating in less developed countries since its incorporation in 2003. The firm serves a narrow set of institutional clients across the Global South, including national governments, bilateral and multilateral donors (FCDO, USAID, World Bank, UNICEF, WHO, GIZ), large foundations (Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Shockwave, Osprey), and sector NGOs (WaterAid, WSUP, Water.org, ESAWAS). Its work is organised around seven focal areas covering rural water supply, climate-resilient WASH, water resource management, urban sanitation, policy/institutions/regulation, professionalising service delivery, and monitoring/evaluation/learning, with most engagements focused on regulatory frameworks, programme design, and sector research.

The firm's "technology" is its deep domain expertise rather than software: outputs include bespoke guidance documents (e.g., the Pan-African Regulatory Framework for Rural WSS developed with ESAWAS, climate-resilient WASH guidance briefs) and configurable planning tools (the CWIS SAP tool for citywide inclusive sanitation). The business operates as a project-based professional services firm, with revenue generated through negotiated advisory contracts; there is no public pricing, no software product, and no scalable technology platform. Revenue was approximately £1.2 million in FY2022-2023 across ten full-time staff, implying roughly £120K of revenue per employee, and the firm transitioned to 100% employee ownership in mid-2023 via The Aguaconsult Employee Ownership Trust. Geographic reach covers more than 30 countries across Africa, Latin America, and Asia, with multilingual delivery capability in English, Spanish, French, and Arabic.

Name

Aguaconsult Ltd.

Legal name

Aguaconsult Ltd.

Website

https://aguaconsult.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Aguaconsult Ltd. is a UK-based, employee-owned consulting firm providing water, sanitation and environmental advisory services to governments, donors, and NGOs working in less developed countries across Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water, Sanitation and Environmental (WASH) Consulting

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Environmental Consulting Services (541620)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

WASH & Public Health (Water, Sanitation, Hygiene) (BPADAIAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) (BPAGABAC), WASH (Water, Sanitation & Hygiene) Organizations (HLAJAKAI)

Keywords

• Water sanitation advisory
• WASH consulting services
• Environmental sector consulting
• Global development advisory
• Climate-resilient WASH

Headquarters

HQ city

Wivenhoe

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Professional advisory services provided to governments, donors, NGOs, and international organisations in water, sanitation and environmental sectors. Projects include research, technical assistance, programme evaluation, and policy development.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Aguaconsult provides Water, Sanitation and Environmental (WASH) advisory consulting services to public, private and third-sector organisations working to improve sustainable service delivery for marginalised people in less developed countries. Engagements span rural and urban contexts across Africa, Latin America and Asia and focus on seven focal areas: policy/institutions/regulation, service delivery professionalisation, climate-resilient WASH, systems strengthening, citywide inclusive sanitation, monitoring/evaluation/learning, and WASH financing.

Product overview

Aguaconsult Ltd. is a UK-based consulting company (employee-owned since 2023) that provides advisory services in water, sanitation, and environmental sectors. Their service portfolio includes: Rural Water Supply, Climate-Resilient WASH, Water Resource Management, Urban Sanitation, Citywide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS), Policy/Institutions/Regulation, Professionalising Management Arrangements, Systems Strengthening, Monitoring/Evaluation/Learning (MEL), and Financing for WASH. They publish guidance documents including climate-resilient WASH guides for funders and NGOs. Their work is organized around seven focal areas and delivered through consulting engagements with governments, donors, NGOs, and development partners across Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rural Water Supply Advisory Services Advisory and consulting engagements supporting governments, donors and NGOs to improve planning, regulation, and sustainability of rural water supply services in less developed countries.
• Climate-Resilient WASH Advisory Services Advisory support to funders, governments and NGOs on maximising impact, equity and sustainability of climate-resilient WASH programming and on approaches to providing climate-resilient water services.
• Policy, Institutions and Regulation Advisory Services Advisory and capacity-building engagements supporting governments and regulators on policy development, institutional frameworks, legal reform, and regulatory systems for WASH services.
• Urban Sanitation and Citywide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS) Advisory Services Advisory and analytical engagements supporting governments and partners to plan, regulate and improve citywide inclusive sanitation and urban sanitation services.
• WASH Systems Strengthening and Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) Services Programme design, MEL, evidence generation and systems-strengthening consulting for donors, governments and NGOs to improve the sustainability and legacy of WASH investments.
• WASH Financing and Climate Finance Advisory Services Development finance, blended finance and climate finance advisory supporting the structuring of financial mechanisms and capital mobilisation for WASH and climate-resilient water services.
• CWIS SAP Tool Customisable Citywide Inclusive Sanitation Services Assessment and Planning (CWIS SAP) tool that compares sanitation intervention outcomes on equity, financial sustainability and safety criteria, and supports CWIS planning for clients.
• Climate-Resilient WASH Guidance Documents Published guidance documents for funders and NGOs on maximising impact, equity and sustainability in climate-resilient WASH programming, co-funded with partners including Osprey Foundation and Shockwave Foundation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Transitioned to employee ownership in 2023, preserving company ethos and values while ensuring collective future
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments5 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

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• RORA (Rolling Out Regulation in Africa)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 February 2024Aguaconsult joined RORA as a service delivery partner alongside WSUP, WHO, and ESAWAS. RORA adopts a demand-led approach working with governments interested in improving regulation, inspired by WHO Roadmap for Advancing Sanitation Regulation.
• Baxendale Employee OwnershipsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProvided legal support throughout the employee ownership transition process and ongoing support and training for staff.
• ESAWAS (Eastern and Southern Africa Water and Sanitation Regulators Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing collaboration on regulatory frameworks for rural WSS services; Aguaconsult commissioned to develop Pan-African guidance and regulatory framework for rural water supply and sanitation.
• WSUP (Water & Sanitation for Urban Populations)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCore partner in RORA initiative; collaborated on multi-country study on public water utilities serving rural areas (Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, Zambia).
• Osprey FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-funded climate resilient water services study with Shockwave Foundation; co-convened two-day systems strengthening meeting in London in October 2023.
• Shockwave FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-funded development of climate-resilient WASH guidance briefs with Osprey Foundation; partnered on assessment of approaches to providing climate resilient water services.
• IRC WASHsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on design of FCDO's WASH Systems for Health programme; conducted rapid and in-depth assessments in several countries.
• WaterAidcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership on thematic area of strengthening service delivery models; collaborated on assessment of management models for rural and small-town water supply.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• WaterAid: WaterAid is a major international NGO focused exclusively on water, sanitation and hygiene in 22 countries. Overlaps with Aguaconsult on WASH systems strengthening, MEL, and policy advocacy, but operates as a much larger implementing and campaigning organization with hundreds of staff.
• DAI (Development Alternatives, Inc.): DAI is a global development consulting firm with a substantial WASH, climate, and governance practice serving USAID, FCDO, World Bank and others. Competes for the same donor-funded technical assistance contracts as Aguaconsult, but at much larger scale and with a broader sector footprint.
• Winrock International: Winrock International is a US-based development organization implementing WASH, climate, and economic programmes in emerging markets. Comparable to Aguaconsult on WASH sector focus and donor-funded advisory delivery, but with a much larger and more diversified portfolio.
• Tetra Tech: Tetra Tech is a large US engineering and consulting firm with a leading WASH practice delivering donor-funded water supply, sanitation, and climate-resilience projects worldwide. Represents the scaled incumbent that boutiques like Aguaconsult either partner with on sub-contracts or compete against on technical assistance bids.

Direct peers

• SNV Netherlands Development Organisation: SNV is a large Dutch development organization operating WASH, climate, and agriculture programmes in 20+ developing countries. Comparable to Aguaconsult in WASH sector focus and emerging-economy client base, with a similar mix of policy advisory, capacity building, and donor-funded project delivery.
• IRC WASH: IRC WASH is a Netherlands-based think-and-do tank focused on WASH systems strengthening, monitoring, and policy in low- and middle-income countries. Highly comparable to Aguaconsult in mission, geographic focus, and technical specialism, and an existing collaborator on FCDO's WASH Systems for Health programme.
• WSUP (Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor): WSUP is a UK-based non-profit that advises water utilities and city governments on service delivery for low-income urban areas across Africa and South Asia. Directly comparable to Aguaconsult on CWIS, utility professionalization, and donor-funded technical assistance, and an existing RORA consortium partner.

Emerging players

• IMC Worldwide: IMC Worldwide is a UK-based development consultancy with a strong WASH, infrastructure, and climate adaptation practice serving FCDO, World Bank, and AfDB. Comparable in scale and donor relationships to Aguaconsult, with overlapping expertise in rural water supply and water resources management.
• WaterLex: WaterLex is a Swiss-based international NGO that supports development and implementation of water laws and human-rights-based water governance, with a focus on regulation and policy. Highly comparable in the regulatory and policy niche of WASH, serving similar UN and government clients.

Regional players

• Water & Sanitation for Africa (WSA): WSA is a pan-African NGO focused on WASH service delivery and capacity building, headquartered in Côte d'Ivoire. Comparable in regional focus and WASH specialism, but operates primarily as a local implementing partner rather than a policy/regulatory advisor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aguaconsult

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Aguaconsult Ltd.