Safe Water Optimization Tool

Research & Development

The SWOT is built on years of engineering research, technology development, and implementation science in refugee camps around the world, published in leading engineering and global health journals. We have also published a number of white papers documenting our latest modelling research and its operationalization on the SWOT web tool.

Evaluating chlorine taste and odor acceptability to inform drinking water chlorination in humanitarian settings: Lessons from trials in Uganda

Heylen, C., String, G., Naliyongo, D., Ali, S. I., Brown, J., De Santi, M., Ogira, V., Fesselet, J., Orbinski, J., & Lantagne, D. (2025)

PLOS Water, 4(2): e0000267

Protecting the safe water chain in refugee camps: An exploratory study of water handling practices, chlorine decay, and household water safety in South Sudan, Jordan, and Rwanda

Ali, S. I., De Santi, M., Monette, G., Khan, U. T., Fesselet, J., & Orbinski, J (2025)

American Journal of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene, 112(2): 451-461.

Challenges and opportunities for advancing data-driven WASH programming: Reflections from the UNC Chapel Hill Water and Health Conference Side Event "Data: A key for unlocking quality in WASH programming"

Brown, J., Ali, S. I., Hubbard, S., MacDonald, L., Peletz, R., Sill, K., & Zhong, M (2024)

PLOS Water, 3(11): e0000316.

Evaluation of the Safe Water Optimization Tool to provide evidence-based chlorination targets in surface waters: lessons from a refugee setting in Uganda

Heylen, C., String, G., Naliyongo, D., Ali, S. I., Brown, J, De Santi, M, Ogira, V., Fesselet, J., Orbinski, J., & Lantagne, D. (2025)

Environmental Science & Technology, 58:42 (18531—18540)

Unpaired Data Modelling with the SWOT

De Santi, M., Khan, U.T., & Ali, S. I. (2023)

White Paper. Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research: Toronto, Canada.

SWOT EO Version 1.5 Updates

De Santi, M., Khan, U.T., & Ali, S. I. (2023)

White Paper. Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research: Toronto, Canada.

Effectiveness of emergency water treatment practices in refugee camps in South Sudan

Ali, S. I., Ali, S. S., & Fesselet, J. (2015)

Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 93(8), 550–558.

Evidence-based chlorination targets for household water safety in humanitarian settings: Recommendations from a multi-site study in refugee camps in South Sudan, Jordan, and Rwanda

Ali, S. I., Ali, S. S., & Fesselet, J. (2021)

Water Research, 189(116642).

Forecasting point-of-consumption chlorine residual in refugee settlements using ensembles of artificial neural networks

De Santi, M., Khan, U.T., Arnold, M., Fesselet, J., & Ali, S.I. (2021)

npj Clean Water 4, 35.

The Safe Water Optimization Tool Artificial Neural Network Analytics for the SWOT v2.0

De Santi, M., & Ali, S. I. (2021)

White Paper. Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research: Toronto, Canada.

Modelling point-of-consumption residual chlorine in humanitarian response: Can cost-sensitive learning improve probabilistic forecasts?

De Santi, M., Ali, S. I., Arnold, M., Fesselet, J., Hyvarinen, A., & Khan, U.T. (2022)

PLOS Water, 1(9): e0000040

Case Studies

As of 2025, the SWOT has been deployed at 50+ sites around the world, across 13 countries, by 11 humanitarian organizations, reaching water systems serving over 700,000 people.

From these deployments, we have generated a number of case studies that illustrate how the SWOT was used to improve water safety across a range of humanitarian water supply use cases including with ground and surface water, in piped networks, water trucking, and institutional/healthcare facility water systems.

Overall, studies demonstrate that the SWOT can improve the efficacy of chlorination programs by 50-200% or more, offering a powerful method to assure and enhance the impact of safe water programs.

Groundwater, Piped Network

Research & Development

Evaluating chlorine taste and odor acceptability to inform drinking water chlorination in humanitarian settings: Lessons from trials in Uganda

Protecting the safe water chain in refugee camps: An exploratory study of water handling practices, chlorine decay, and household water safety in South Sudan, Jordan, and Rwanda

Challenges and opportunities for advancing data-driven WASH programming: Reflections from the UNC Chapel Hill Water and Health Conference Side Event "Data: A key for unlocking quality in WASH programming"

Evaluation of the Safe Water Optimization Tool to provide evidence-based chlorination targets in surface waters: lessons from a refugee setting in Uganda

Unpaired Data Modelling with the SWOT

SWOT EO Version 1.5 Updates

Effectiveness of emergency water treatment practices in refugee camps in South Sudan

Evidence-based chlorination targets for household water safety in humanitarian settings: Recommendations from a multi-site study in refugee camps in South Sudan, Jordan, and Rwanda

Forecasting point-of-consumption chlorine residual in refugee settlements using ensembles of artificial neural networks

The Safe Water Optimization Tool Artificial Neural Network Analytics for the SWOT v2.0

Modelling point-of-consumption residual chlorine in humanitarian response: Can cost-sensitive learning improve probabilistic forecasts?

Case Studies

⬢Kutupalong-Balukhali Refugee Settlement | Bangladesh

⬢Kyaka II Refugee Settlement | Uganda

⬢Kyaka II Refugee Settlement | Uganda

⬢Las Anod General Hospital | Somaliland

⬢Anka IDP Camp | Nigeria

⬢Nyarugusu Refugee Camp | Tanzania

⬢Mbawa IDP Camp | Nigeria

Implementation Locations