People are always asking for impact evaluation... it's hard for libraries, which have such diffuse impacts. But it is hard for clean water, too, as this extract from a relatively recent article suggests:
What Works in Fighting Diarrheal Diseases in Developing Countries? A Critical Review -- Alix Peterson Zwane and Michael Kremer, The World Bank Research Observer, 2007, 10.
Because of the lack of evidence on effectiveness and the maintenance challenge, the case has not been made for prioritizing communal rural water infrastructure for fighting diarrheal disease. Investing in piped water and sanitation in areas where that is feasible and expanding the provision of standard child health interventions have both been shown to work. Finding ways to effectively promote handwashing and point-of-use water treatment also seems a priority. In some circumstances, there may be a strong case for investing in rural water infrastructure for other reasons, and in some environments such infrastructure may have important health benefits. But the case for prioritizing communal water infrastructure will need to be made rather than assumed.
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