The PepsiCo Foundation has announced a $5 million grant to AquaFund, a fund launched by the Inter-American Development Bank to support investment in water supply and sanitation, water resources, and solid waste management and wastewater treatment in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Part of a public/private partnership initiated in February between PepsiCo and IDB, the grant will support a variety of projects, including microcredit loans and improved sanitation projects that will reach some 500,000 people in the region by the end of 2015. The partnership aims to spur social and economic growth in twenty-six countries in Latin America and the Caribbean by addressing a variety of critical issues, including water and sanitation, recycling, youth development, disaster relief and recovery, sustainable agriculture, nutrition and food security, and sharing knowledge and best practices about sustainability.

The first PepsiCo Foundation-supported AquaFund project will be launched in Peru, with others to follow in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Mexico.

"In Latin America, more than 20 percent of the rural population does not have access to safe water, and 45 percent lack adequate sanitation," said IDB president Luis Alberto Moreno. "PepsiCo is the first private sector organization to participate in our innovative regional trust funds for development activities, and we look forward to working together to significantly expand the AquaFund initiative, which will address the growing demands for drinking water and sanitation services in the region."