June 11, 2025
Written by Eden Morrison
Business Connect has made significant progress in expanding access to clean water throughout South America and Africa. This year, Business connect is looking to expand our network even further. Saurabh Chhabra recently joined the Business Connect team as Director of Asia to help us expand our network into the continent. We sat down with him to discuss the current threats to Asia’s water accessibility and plans for Business Connect’s impact and expansion.
The Right Man for the Job
Saurabh Chhabra is a seasoned expert in the field of water safety and public health. For 14 years he worked across Asia and parts of Africa, advancing global water solutions while also addressing critical issues such as malaria prevention, disaster response, and access to drinkable water in schools. Chhabra has a vast knowledge of Asian markets and a personal understanding of the threats facing Asia’s water access. Chhabra is now working with Business Connect to implement clean water initiatives and global water solutions to improve water access across the continent.
The Current Issues
When asked about the current water crisis in Asia, Chhabra broke it down in familiar terms: “Asia is not different from South America and Africa,” he said. “If you broadly speak about water, it’s very similar. The differences lie [in] the density of population, the amount of disasters per year, the level of sanitation, and how good or bad the level of sanitation is.” Chhabra went on to explain the main threats to clean water access in Asia are water quality, availability, and affordability.
Sanitization is a leading issue to water accessibility in Asia. The water that is available is often not safe to drink. Filtration is expensive and requires expertise that many might not have. Because of this, many are forced to drink contaminated water, allowing waterborne illnesses to run rampant.
Due to factors such as drought, climate change and the high population density of the region, access to drinkable water is scarce. Many countries have resorted to digging for water underground, but this practice comes with many complications. Sanitation is again a concern, mainly because this water is much more difficult to sanitize due to its high levels of hard metals and other harmful particulates.
The scarcity of water leads to other issues, such as affordability. When water becomes a commodity, paying for it becomes a huge barrier to many. Chhabra shared that in many parts of Asia there are debates around whose responsibility it is to provide water. Citizens feel it is the responsibility of the government to provide access to safe drinking water, but many governments struggle to afford this.
Certain parts of Asia are facing more unique problems, such as Yemen and Syria, which have a need for reconstruction efforts in the wake of the conflicts. Countries located in the South-East region of Asia are also more prone to weather related disasters, such as monsoons and extreme flooding.
The Plan for Business Connect
Urgency is the name of the game for Chhabra as he works to build Business Connect’s presence in Asia. “We can always have, like, a broad plan on what we want to do in 2025, 2026, and the five-year plan, etc., but right now, I’m focusing on creating an urgent impact” he says. Chhabra wants to ensure his presence on this Business Connect team makes an impact. His team is ramping up efforts to increase testing and filtration distribution throughout Asia: “If you want to create a sustainable, long lasting impact [for] a family or a community in the Global South, it needs to be derived from filtration, because filtration equipment will last for several years, whereas treatment will only be once.” Chhabra continued to explain that simply providing this equipment is not enough.
Education needs to be a top priority. “If you go to remote areas, there may be a lack of education on W.A.S.H., which means that you must focus on safe drinking water, clean hands before eating food and safe sanitation,” Chhabra explains. “There is a continuous push of promoting the right knowledge within the communities, but there might be less knowledge on what kind of diseases can this water that actually looks clean can still carry. I think those things will persist.”
Providing safe water solutions means providing an education on the products as well. Installation and care instructions can be complicated, and it needs to be the role of our distributors to educate those we provide equipment with on the proper usage of these materials. This is particularly important when it comes to disaster preparedness equipment. Chhabra also explains the overwhelming amount of water filtration products available in local markets: “So, which one to use? What is more apt? What will provide me with absolutely safe drinking water? All of those things are also, like, something not very easily understood at the ground.”
A Message for the Readers
When asked what he felt our readers really needed to understand about our expansion in Asia, Chhabra said he wanted to emphasize our utilization of donor/partner dollars: “The idea behind having sustainable distribution would be that the funding that is being received by individual donors or corporate donors or nonprofits is well spent.” Chhabra and Business Connect are working to ensure that every dollar is put to good use. He empathized with donors who worry their donation money isn’t ever seeing the light of day, but emphasized that Business Connect’s vast partnership network with NGOs and grassroots organizations are continuously working to optimize donor dollars.
