10/08/2026
SOLAR-POWERED SAFE WATERđź’§
Filipino researchers developed a portable system capable of producing up to 2,000 liters of potable water in nine hours using solar energy.
SAFEWATRS, developed by the Department of Science and Technology’s Industrial Technology Development Institute, was created for communities where clean water and reliable electricity can be difficult to access, particularly during disasters and in remote areas.
The system can treat freshwater from rivers, lakes, springs and collected rainwater. During testing using water from Laguna Lake, the treated water met the mandatory parameters evaluated under the Philippine National Standards for Drinking Water.
SAFEWATRS is already being used outside the laboratory.
A unit deployed in Sto. Domingo, Ilocos Sur was reported to serve around 180 households. In Madalag, Aklan, another unit began supplying drinking water in 2026 to at least 50 households in an Akeanon-Bukidnon indigenous community. DOST has also reported deployments in several other parts of the country.
The technology received a Silver Award at the 49th International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva in Switzerland in 2024.
Its potential is especially relevant in the Philippines. PSA data for 2024 showed that only 53.1% of Filipino families had access to safely managed drinking water services, while 6.5% experienced at least one period when drinking water was insufficient because none was available from their source.
A machine powered by sunlight will not solve the country’s water problems on its own, but SAFEWATRS gives communities another way to produce safe drinking water in places where conventional infrastructure may be limited or disrupted.
