The Water Project Inc., a non-profit organisation that seeks to provide water supply to remote communities in Africa, has turned to bitcoin as a cheaper way to receive donations and transfer funds.

The organisation's new high-tech remote monitoring project Water Promise accepts donations in bitcoin to monitor water supplies in local communities in sub-Saharan Africa. The reason for adopting bitcoin is its lower costs compared to banking systems. Donations can be made beginning from 0.196 to 98.5748 bitcoins.

The technologies will also bring in transparency and accountability, the Water Project's website claims. The organisation plans to put on a real time online sensor data, so that everyone could see how much safe water is available for people. When a pump is broken or a tank runs dry, the Project will send one of its trained repair teams to fix it.

Users can donate anonymously or get an official receipt for their donation. The static bitcoin wallet address is shown on the project's page, along with some examples of the project's expenses in bitcoin digital currency. For example, Water Well and Sanitation for a School will cost 86.627 BTC while Clean, Safe water for a Family is 0.6064 BTC.

The Water Project has been working for 7 years now, helping people to dig wells, construct small sub-surface dams, catch the rain, protect fresh-water springs, filter surface water and maintain proper sanitation and hygiene practices. The Water Project is currently helping communities in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Uganda.  They had previously funded projects in Cameroon, Haiti, and India.

Recently BitPesa, a Kenya-based bitcoin remittance service, has launched a new BitPesa Trade platform enabling traders to buy and sell bitcoins 24 hours 7 days a week. In July a digital currency wallet, Bitsoko, funded by Bill & Melinda Gates foundation, announced plans to sponsor a series of educational events in Nairobi, Kenya, explaining blockchain for start-ups.

Sonya Belova