About Ask IRC

Who can use the Q&A service?
What kinds of questions does IRC's Q&A service answer?
Who answers the questions?
What does a response contain?
How quickly will IRC's Q&A service respond to my request?
How does IRC protect the privacy of its users?
Are there other Q&A services available in the water and sanitation sector?

Who can use the Q&A service?

Anyone with a question about water and sanitation can send a question to IRC's Q&A Service. However, due to limited resources we might have to prioritise, meaning that we cannot answer questions for free coming from (big) commercial companies or consultancy agencies.

What kinds of questions does IRC's Q&A service answer?

Here are some examples of the kinds of questions that the Q&A service can address:

• Corruption in the water sector
• Water saving latrine technology
• Hygiene education materials
• Handwashing and diarrhoea
• Rainwater harvesting

Who answers the questions?

Most of the questions are answered by the information specialists at IRC. When the question posed warrants advice from one of the professional staff members within IRC, the enquirer will receive a reply from the professional concerned. Most of the Spanish questions are transferred to CINARA, Colombia, and most of the French questions are transferred to CREPA, Burkina Faso, both partners of IRC.

What does a response contain?

Our individualised response to your question will typically include references from our library database, related Internet resources, and/or sources of further information. In response to the questions we receive we have compiled an overview of water and sanitation information resources, including water portals, discussion groups, organisation directories, statistics and (bibliographic) databases covering a wide range of water and sanitation topics. Other resources we use for answering questions include the IRC library database, the InterWater gateway to water and sanitation organisations, and the Source News Service.

We may be able to provide an answer to a brief factual question, but more often we direct you to sources, such as web pages or print material, where you can learn more about your topic.

How quickly will IRC's Q&A service respond to my request?

The Q&A Service welcomes your questions and we will make an effort to get back to you as soon as possible. Typically, our response time is five business days. Also, please know that we are not open around the clock; evening and weekend enquiries are not assigned to one of our information specialists any sooner than the next business day.

How does IRC protect the privacy of its users?

IRC follows specific privacy guidelines concerning information supplied by users of our Q&A Service and information we electronically gather from visitors to our website. Our policy is simple: we collect no personal information about you unless you choose to provide that information to us. We do not give, share, sell, or transfer any personal information to a third party.

Are there other Q&A services available in the water and sanitation sector?

• GATE question-answer service
  Focuses on appropriate technologies. Service is limited to enquirers from developing countries and non-profit organisations working in the development context.

• ITDG technical enquiry service
  Free of charge, technical and developmental information to grassroots development workers, community-based organisations, NGOs and other agencies using appropriate technologies to implement sustainable development.
  Enquiries can be made through any of ITDG Practical Action's offices.

• WaterAid technical enquiry service. The service is provided by engineering specialists who are available once a week. Mailto:technicalenquiryservice@wateraid.org.uk