Abstract

In 2017, the government of Ecuador established the minimum quantity of water required to be provided for free by drinking water utilities. Ecuador recognized the access to water as a fundamental human right because it guarantees the good living, known as “Sumak kawsay”, an indigenous Andean concept, in the Ecuadorian Constitution. This represents a novel approach to water rights in the world, as it is the first attempt to establish a minimum quantity of water under a constitutional guarantee by legislation, rather than regulation or judicial decision. However, this novel legislative approach raises the question of how this minimum amount of free water will impact the most vulnerable members of the Ecuadorian community. This paper provides the results of the first comprehensive research of the minimum required water provision in Ecuador. In order to measure the impact on the income of households, we built a methodology integrating: doctrinaire analyses, normative studies, and economic analyses. According to the Ecuadorian legislation, over-consumption of raw water generates additional costs that must be paid by water companies to the central government. In that regard, there is an inevitable relationship between the efficiency of the service and those additional costs. Efficiency, on this case, is the capacity of water companies (public or private) to provide water services at an adequate price, observing the following parameters: quantity, quality and sufficiency. Our research found that with this legislation in three Ecuadorian local governments (Cuenca, Gualaceo and Suscal), the most vulnerable households (i.e., low-income and/or indigenous households) will be affected the most. This means that and those families will spend the most part of their income on water services otherwise they would have to reduce their water consumption.

Highlights

  • From a normative standpoint, the case of Ecuador presents a peculiarity in relation to water management

  • We developed the following variables and indicators to determine the extent to which the application of the minimum vital amount of drinking water established by the government affects local governments, in terms of water provision efficiency, and the economic capacity of the most vulnerable families

  • Figure shows the typical household consumption of drinking water by local governments, and it shows the raw water needed by a consumption of drinking by local governments, andwater it alsotoshows the raw water needed by a local government to supplywater the consumption of drinking the household in question

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Summary

Introduction

The case of Ecuador presents a peculiarity in relation to water management. In 1993, the process of State modernization affected the provision of public services, including water provision and management which was delegated to the National Council of Water Resources (1994) [1]. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), access to the vital minimum amount of drinking water is directly related to hygiene and public health. The WHO states that there should be a minimum acceptable quantity of water to cover basic needs, such as drink, food preparation and hygiene. The first level, service without access (less than 5 L per day), cannot guarantee minimum hygiene conditions and entails a high risk for poor health. Basic access (20 L per day) guarantees basic hygiene (hand-washing), the risk for poor health remains high. Intermediate access (50 L per day) assures basic personal and food hygiene and health. Optimal access (100 L per day and more), satisfies all hygiene needs

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