In 2008, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded IRC two multi-year, multi-country grants for projects on life-cycle costing (WASHCost) and models for sustainable rural water services (Triple-S ). These two projects were instrumental in the development of new IRC's Service Delivery Approach towards the development of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services that last not for years, but forever. Key to this approach is that it must be delivered by strong and competent national and local systems.
