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Day Light Solar Energies has introduced WaterCredit, an innovative AI-powered fintech platform designed to tackle Uganda’s pressing water and sanitation challenges by making clean water infrastructure more accessible for rural communities.
WaterCredit was developed by Sandra Nabakka to bridge the financing gap faced by cooperatives, schools, and community savings groups that have traditionally been excluded from formal lending systems.
The platform streamlines the process of securing funding for water projects, removing barriers that have slowed progress in the past.
According to Nabakka, “WaterCredit eliminates the hurdles of traditional financing. It guides groups through every step—from identifying needs and matching with the right lenders, to submitting applications—resulting in quicker approvals, improved loan terms, and broader access to essential water and sanitation services.”
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How WaterCredit’s Sandi AI Works
At the core of WaterCredit is “Sandi AI” an intelligent chatbot accessible via web and mobile devices. It communicates in local languages, making the platform user-friendly for people with limited digital literacy.
Here’s how the process unfolds:
Groups start by registering through the chatbot.
Day Light Solar verifies the group’s legitimacy.
The group enters its water infrastructure needs.
Sandi AI uses advanced algorithms to assess the group’s creditworthiness.
The AI consults partner financial institutions in real time to present tailored loan offers.
Groups can review, accept, or decline offers.
Once a loan is approved, Day Light Solar installs the selected water system—be it a solar pump, irrigation kit, or sanitation unit.
Repayment is structured over time, with a grace period to ease the burden.
Nabakka summarizes the impact: “Groups can finally access clean water—quickly and without unnecessary complications.”
Data-Driven and Community-Focused
Before onboarding, Day Light Solar works with local leaders to identify communities with the greatest need. The chatbot analyzes mobile money transactions, savings habits, and repayment histories to create a digital credit profile for each group.
This data-driven approach allows the platform to offer financing packages that match each group’s ability to repay, ensuring solutions are both practical and sustainable.
Company spokesperson Catharine Ainebyoona explains, “We’re removing the delays and confusion that have stalled so many well-intentioned projects. WaterCredit makes financing transparent and efficient.”
Widespread impact and flexibility
WaterCredit is already gaining momentum among farmer cooperatives, SACCOs, Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), and women-led groups across Uganda. With climate change disrupting rainfall and straining water sources, timely access to technology like solar irrigation and sanitation units is increasingly critical.
Lydia Nantume, who leads a women’s farming collective, shares her experience: “For years, we struggled to fund a solar irrigation system. With WaterCredit, the process is clear, the chatbot speaks our language, and we no longer need to travel to Kampala for paperwork.”
The platform’s flexibility stands out—groups can seek financing for a range of solutions, including rainwater harvesting tanks, solar-powered pumps, drip irrigation systems, school water filtration units, and handwashing stations.
Scalable innovation for Africa’s future
Day Light Solar Energies aims to leverage its AI-first approach to unlock financing for tens of thousands of underserved communities, not only in Uganda but throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. The company is actively exploring opportunities to scale this model to neighboring countries.
Ainebyoona concludes, “We believe this model can transform access to water across the region. By connecting data, technology, and community needs, we’re demonstrating that clean water can be a right for all—driven by innovation, not privilege.”