A hidden crisis: unravelling current failures for future success in rural groundwater supply This project aims to build a robust, multi-country evidence base on the causes of the unacceptably high rates of groundwater system and service failure and use this knowledge to deliver a step-change in future functionality. The project takes an interdisciplinary approach using the latest thinking and techniques in both natural and social science and applies them to three African countries (Uganda, Ethiopia & Malawi) that have struggled for decades with water service sustainability. Research and development activity contributing to the UK’s strategy to address key development challenges.