Two new grants totaling $7.6 million will help promote access to safe water in South Asia and Africa, the PepsiCo Foundation announced Thursday.

The funds will go toward helping the United Nations reach its goal of halving the number of people lacking access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015.

"One of the major goals of PepsiCo Foundation is to develop sustainable partnerships that will bring clean, safe water to populations in need," Indra Nooyi, CEO and chairman of PepsiCo and chairman of PepsiCo Foundation, said in a statement.

More than 1 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water and approximately 2 million children die unnecessarily from water-related diseases in the developing world every year, according to the statement.

The PepsiCo Foundation said WaterPartners, a non-profit organization, will receive $4.1 million for an initiative to establish a microfinance market to bring clean water to 120,000 people across India over the course of three years through micro loans.

Safe Water Network, an organization that brings safe water to households and villages in India, Ghana and Bangladesh, will receive $3.5 million from the foundation over three years.

WaterPartners' WaterCredit program in India will provide money to local non-governmental organizations to install pipes, faucets and storage cellars, and will create a loan fund for urban communities, the foundation said.

"The micro-credit model employed by WaterCredit can dramatically increase access to clean water and improved sanitation for the poorest communities around the world," WaterPartners' executive director and co-founder Gary White said in a statement.

Kurt Soderlund, the Safe Water Network's chief executive, said its funds over time will reach millions of people by providing water systems to neglected populations using methods including rainwater harvesting and village-level water systems.