Public Water Sector Research Articles

Unleashing capacity in the water sector: A framework for public entities

ABSTRACT Capacity development in the water sector is crucial to achieving universal, adequate, sustainable, and resilient services. It has been broadly recognized as a priority, connected with governance and management of water resources and water and sanitation services. Through a scoping review including 153 scientific articles and 103 other documents, complemented with a consultation of experts, this article presents how the concept of ‘capacity development’ has evolved, what levels it consists of, and which are the key elements of success for effective capacity development processes. The article finds that most existing frameworks do not conduct any in-depth analysis of the determinants that define capacity at different levels and that there is no specific framework for public water-related entities. To address this gap, a dedicated capacity development framework is proposed for the public water sector, defining the key determinants to be pondered in the analysis of the situation at different levels and types of interventions to achieve outcomes at each level. The framework will enable practitioners and policymakers to acknowledge the complexity and develop more systematic work on capacity development in water through various types of interventions that can support them.

Understanding contemporary challenges for water security in Ulaanbaatar, a semi-arid region in Mongolia

Water security is one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century. Understanding context-specific challenges and opportunities around this issue is key to improving water systems globally. This paper explores the current state of urban water security in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital city. Ulaanbaatar is home to more than 40% of the country’s population and 60% of its national GDP. The city is located in the Tuul River basin and relies almost entirely on groundwater aquifers of the Tuul River for its supply of clean drinking water. In recent years, socio-economic stressors resulting from rapid urbanisation and environmental pressures have intensified the levels of degradation of the Tuul River and intensified the risks of water insecurity for the population of Ulaanbaatar. First, this paper draws from an extensive literature review and document analysis to provide an overview of the current state of urban water security in Ulaanbaatar. Secondly, the discussion is substantiated with information from key informant interviews which aim to explain the ongoing challenges for water security in Ulaanbaatar and suggest paths for improvement. This study finds that the main challenges for water security in Ulaanbaatar are data unavailability, limited human and financial resources across public water sector agencies, exacerbating flood risk and ongoing water quality disparities between the central city area and peri-urban ger districts.

Business Models in Water Supply Companies-Key Implications of Trust.

Currently, trust is one of the key factors that ensures the acceptable mechanisms of economic and social relationships. It is not only an element of correct communication, but also a factor in inter-organizational bonds and a source of social dialogue. Trust has become a factor in the creation of value, as well as a key component of the conceptualization and operationalization of business models. It has revealed many problems at the strategic level, in the water sector in particular. From this perspective, trust is a major factor of strategies, models, and business processes which are currently being built. New types of business models that emerge have also started to include trust as part of their configuration. This is the case in the construction and implementation of social business models. A social business model can be understood as a business model whose factors that stimulate development include social aspects expressed in balancing economic, environmental, and social issues with the involvement of communities and their dynamic communication focused on the selected attributes of business models that stimulate growth and that are conducive to achieving success, expressed by economic and/or social profit. The satisfaction of stakeholders with such a solution is another condition for embedding this solution in the sphere of the social economy. In this approach, trust, which stimulates the growth of social and economic value in the component structure of the social business model, becomes particularly important. The aim of the paper is to present the place and role of trust as a key component of social business models. The scope of the paper includes research into public water sector industry companies located in the Province of Silesia and their social business models, with a focus on defining the position of trust among other attributes of these business models. The authors put forward a hypothesis that trust is a crucial component of the social business models of water supply companies that operate at the intersection of the market and social economy. Trust also helps companies from the water supply sector achieve both social and economic effects. It also becomes a source of reverse market polarization, where the value of a social business model materializes to create social and environmental effects without detriment to the economic effects.

Sustainable Water Management: Virtual Reality Training for Open-Channel Flow Monitoring

The estimated population growth in the next decades will create severe scarcity of water and will have a tremendous impact on the natural environment. Both the developed and developing countries will have to face increasing challenges to match the greater demand of clean and safe water, looking for supplies far from the residential area. This situation will be furtherly exasperated by the effects of climate change which, increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme events, will reduce the availability and the quality of water resources and will subject the population to serious and ongoing hazards. In such context, an accurate and continuous monitoring of surface waters represents a fundamental step to reduce the contamination status and plan actions for a sustainable management of this resource. In the last years, the development of advanced methodologies and high-tech equipment able to lower the times and costs of the field surveys has not been associated with an appropriate training of the technical staff of public and private bodies responsible for the control of the territory. In most cases, unable to outsource highly qualified personnel due to lack of funding, such bodies tend to reduce the monitoring activities, leaving the areas even more subject to the risk of disastrous events. The present paper proposes an innovative educational tool based on the virtual reality in support to technical and non-technical workforces in field activities. The tool represents a Virtual Laboratory able to train on the standard techniques for the accurate monitoring of the water discharge in open-channel flows and was successfully tested on a sample of people from the private and public water sector. According to the results, its use increased the fieldworkers’ ability to quickly move within the river as well as to easily and correctly manage the measurement equipment and methodology, so reducing the costs and times of surveys in situ.

Hydrological Forecasts and Projections for Improved Decision-Making in the Water Sector in Europe

AbstractSimulations of water fluxes at high spatial resolution that consistently cover historical observations, seasonal forecasts, and future climate projections are key to providing climate services aimed at supporting operational and strategic planning, and developing mitigation and adaptation policies. The End-to-end Demonstrator for improved decision-making in the water sector in Europe (EDgE) is a proof-of-concept project funded by the Copernicus Climate Change Service program that addresses these requirements by combining a multimodel ensemble of state-of-the-art climate model outputs and hydrological models to deliver sectoral climate impact indicators (SCIIs) codesigned with private and public water sector stakeholders from three contrasting European countries. The final product of EDgE is a water-oriented information system implemented through a web application. Here, we present the underlying structure of the EDgE modeling chain, which is composed of four phases: 1) climate data processing, 2) hydrological modeling, 3) stakeholder codesign and SCII estimation, and 4) uncertainty and skill assessments. Daily temperature and precipitation from observational datasets, four climate models for seasonal forecasts, and five climate models under two emission scenarios are consistently downscaled to 5-km spatial resolution to ensure locally relevant simulations based on four hydrological models. The consistency of the hydrological models is guaranteed by using identical input data for land surface parameterizations. The multimodel outputs are composed of 65 years of historical observations, a 19-yr ensemble of seasonal hindcasts, and a century-long ensemble of climate impact projections. These unique, high-resolution hydroclimatic simulations and SCIIs provide an unprecedented information system for decision-making over Europe and can serve as a template for water-related climate services in other regions.

Unravelling gendered practices in the public water sector in Nepal

Abstract Despite decades of gender mainstreaming in the water sector, a wide gap between policy commitments and outcomes remains. This study aims at offering a fresh perspective on such policy gaps, by analysing how gendered discourses, institutions and professional culture contribute to policy gaps. We rely on a conceptual framework originally developed for analysing strategic change, which is used to analyse gender in the public water sector in Nepal. Our analysis relies on a review of national water policies and a series of semi-structured interviews with male and female water professionals from several public agencies. Our findings evidence how dominant discourses, formal rules and professional culture intersect to support and reproduce hegemonic masculine attitudes and practices of water professionals. Such attitudes and practices in turn favour a technocratic implementation of policy measures. We argue that gender equality policy initiatives in the water sector have overly focused on local level formal institutions and have not adequately considered the effects of masculine discourses, norms and culture to be effective in making progress towards gender equity. We conclude with policy recommendations.

Understanding the non-institutionalization of a socio-technical innovation: the case of multiple-use water services (MUS) in Nepal

ABSTRACTMultiple-use water services (MUS) have been promoted and piloted globally for two decades as a socio-technical innovation. Yet the MUS approach has hardly extended beyond donor-funded projects to public policies. We use a collective action framework to analyze the non-institutionalization of MUS in Nepal. We find that MUS has much cognitive legitimacy, but discourse fragmentation has reduced its socio-political legitimacy. Yet the latter is essential to overcome the institutional challenges of a fragmented public water sector and to mainstream MUS into policy debate.

The Nexus of Statutory Allocation to the Public Water Sector and Population Density of Nigerian States

This paper posits that lack of maintenance, planning and bad governance including corruption led to the failure of the Nigerian public water supply system. A reconnaissance literature survey showed that virtually every city has decayed public taps and infrastructure causing most rural dwellers to trek long distances to obtain water for use with spurious quality. These are inspite of grants and interventions from international donors and credit agencies including the World Bank. Against this backdrop, an investigation was caused to examine the correspondence between financial allocation to the sector and every swelling population. Using analysis of variance for a test population of 20 states from the 36 states in Nigeria with data from National Bureau of Statistics and National Planning Commission, results showed that linearity of statutory allocation was positive with the population density of states with R2 values at < 10%. Also, financial allocations to water supply over the period (1994 – 1996) were unstable occasioned by political and economic instability in the country. Further, the study observed that the epileptic water supply gave to private participation to provide portable drinking water which was hitherto alien to developing economies. The paper recommends that state governments should adopt a responsive model that will adjust allocations to water projects

The Nexus of Statutory Allocation to the Public Water Sector and Population Density of Nigerian States

This paper posits that lack of maintenance, planning and bad governance including corruption led to the failure of the Nigerian public water supply system. A reconnaissance literature survey showed that virtually every city has decayed public taps and infrastructure causing most rural dwellers to trek long distances to obtain water for use with spurious quality. These are inspite of grants and interventions from international donors and credit agencies including the World Bank. Against this backdrop, an investigation was caused to examine the correspondence between financial allocation to the sector and every swelling population. Using analysis of variance for a test population of 20 states from the 36 states in Nigeria with data from National Bureau of Statistics and National Planning Commission, results showed that linearity of statutory allocation was positive with the population density of states with R2 values at < 10%. Also, financial allocations to water supply over the period (1994 – 1996) were unstable occasioned by political and economic instability in the country. Further, the study observed that the epileptic water supply gave to private participation to provide portable drinking water which was hitherto alien to developing economies. The paper recommends that state governments should adopt a responsive model that will adjust allocations to water projects

Developing Rural Water Systems: An Evaluation of Haiti’s First Chlorinated Municipal Water System in the Central Plateau

Haiti has the worst drinking-water indicators in the Western Hemisphere and access to improved water sources has not dramatically improved for over two decades. This limited success despite hefty investments can be attributed to a variety of reasons including lack of community involvement and lack of long-term support of operation and maintenance for rural water systems. This paper presents a case study of Haiti’s first municipal chlorinated water system in the rural Central Plateau and critically examines its effectiveness. While the technology behind the Cange water system is highly innovative and effective, its lack of community involvement and feasible operation/maintenance jeopardizes its long-term viability. Methods to sustain the system without major external intervention are currently being developed and attempted through a partnership with Haiti’s public water sector. NGOs and organizations should ensure that an appropriate community development framework is established prior to system installation so that these problems can be avoided.

The Impact of Applying the Total Quality Management and Kaizen Methods on the Maintenance of Electricity and Water sectors

In this work the total quality management (TQM) and Kaizen philosophies were applied on the electricity and public water sector maintenance. The methodology of collecting the data was by designing a special questionnaire containing a series of questions comparing these two philosophies for a specific period of application to study their effect on the maintenance and the cost in the electricity and public water sector. After six months of applying these philosophies, the questionnaire data were collected and analyzed using SPSS package. The results have shown that 55% of employees believe that the philosophy of kaizen is relatively applied in the electricity sector. But there is a ratio of 65% of them think that the administration of the total quality management is the most suitable to be applied in the electricity and water sectors. In addition to that there is a ratio of about 50% see that both methods have achieved better improvements of maintenance in comparison with traditional methods, consequently both methods were successful in the electricity sector for improving maintenance and reducing the cost. But the results were almost equal and this may indicate that due to the lack of sufficient knowledge of the pros and cons of both ways.

Technical inefficiency effects in a stochastic production function for managerial incentives in public water utilities

Performance of state-owned water utilities in developing countries is often weak. This study estimates the impact of managerial incentives upon efficiency using a stochastic frontier production function with revenue water as the output. The empirical analysis utilises unbalanced panelled data consisting of revenue water, connections, operating expenditure, water delivered and staff, from Uganda's 19 National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) sub-utilities for a 9-year period, 2002–2010. The inefficiency effects are modelled as a function of utility-specific variables: service coverage, level of financial incentives, target difficulty, and year of observation. While financial incentives and increased service coverage improve efficiency, targets (such as the reduction of non-revenue water) that are perceived as excessive by employees may reduce it. The findings suggest some policy implications: utility managers in the public water sector need to incorporate monetary incentives and increase service coverage to reduce non-revenue water. However, targets need to be set with great care and with transparency.

Competence formation and post-graduate education in the public water sector in Indonesia

Abstract. The water sector is dependent on effective institutions and organisations, and, therefore, on strong competences at the individual level. In this paper we describe competence formation and competence needs in a case study of the Directorate General of Water Resources (DGWR) in the Ministry of Public Works in Indonesia. A framework is introduced for the water sector comprising three aggregate competences for technical issues, management, and governance, and a meta-competence for continuous learning and innovation. The four competences are further organised in a T-shaped competence profile. Though DGWR professionals have a firmly "technical" orientation, both surveys and interviews reveal a strong perceived requirement for other competences: in particular the learning meta-competence, as well as the aggregate competence for management. The aggregate competence for governance systematically scores lower. Further, a discrepancy appears to exist between the competences that staff perceive as needed in daily work, and those that can be acquired during post-graduate water education. In both locally-based and international post-graduate water education, the aggregate competences for management as well as governance are reportedly addressed modestly, if at all. With low competence in these fields, it is difficult for professionals to communicate and collaborate effectively in a multidisciplinary way. As a result, the horizontal bar of the T-shaped profile remains weakly developed. In international post-graduate education, this is partially compensated by the attention to continuous learning and innovation. The exposure to a different culture and learning format is experienced as fundamentally formative.

100‐days rapid change initiatives in African public water utilities

Purpose – This paper aims to test the 100‐days rapid change model for African public water utilities.Design/methodology/approach – A case study is conducted of three 100‐days rapid change programs in public water utilities in Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.Findings – The study finds that the 100‐days rapid change model is partly applicable to the African public water sector, given the right conditions.Practical implications – The findings compose a motive and guidance for policy makers and public sector managers in developing countries to undertake 100‐days rapid change programs.Originality/value – To date, no research is available on 100‐days rapid change programs in public water utilities from developing countries.

Pipes and politics: a century of change and continuity in Kenyan urban water supply

ABSTRACTMajor institutional reforms are currently under way to improve the performance of the public water sector in Kenya. However, a historical perspective is needed in order to achieve sustainable improvements that will also benefit the urban poor. This article seeks to provide such a perspective, applying a cross-disciplinary and socio-technical approach to urban water supply over the last century, in which institutions, organisations and technology are seen to interact with political, economic and demographic processes. Despite a series of reforms over the years, the socio-technical structure of the urban water sector in Kenya has shown a remarkable stability since the 1920s, and into the 1980s. However, the sustainability of the public service systems has been eroded since independence, due to changes in the institutional framework surrounding the systems, while exclusive standards and technological choices have essentially been preserved from the colonial era. Current sector reform must create incentives for addressing technology choices and service standards in order to provide public water services also for the urban poor.

Assessment of management approaches in a public water utility: A case study of the Namibia water corporation (NAMWATER)

More than 90% of urban water supply and sanitation services in developing countries are provided by public organizations. However, public provision of services has been inherently inefficient. As a result a number of initiatives have emerged in recent years with a common goal to improve service delivery. In Namibia, the water sector reform resulted in the creation of a public utility called the Namibia Water Corporation (NAMWATER) which is responsible for bulk water supply countrywide. Since its inception in 1998, NAMWATER has been experiencing poor financial performance. This paper presents the findings of a case study that compared the management approaches of NAMWATER to the New Public Management (NPM) paradigm. The focus of the NPM approach is for the public water sector to mirror private sector methods of management so that public utilities can accrue the benefits of effectiveness, efficiency and flexibility often associated with private sector. The study tools used were a combination of literature review, interviews and questionnaires. It was found out that NAMWATER has a high degree of autonomy in its operations, albeit government approved tariffs and sourcing of external financing. The utility reports to government annually to account for results. The utility embraces a notion of good corporate culture and adheres to sound management practices. NAMWATER demonstrated a strong market-orientation indicated by the outsourcing of non-core functions but benchmarking was poorly done. NAMWATER’s customer-orientation is poor as evidenced by the lack of customer care facilities. NAMWATER’s senior management delegated operational authority to lower management to facilitate flexibility and eliminate bottlenecks. The lower management is in turn held accountable for performance by the senior management. There are no robust methods of ensuring sufficient accountability indicated by absence of performance contracts or service level agreements. It was concluded that NAMWATER’s management approaches adhere to the NPM paradigm but some NPM core-ideas such as customer orientation and external accountability (performance contracts) were visibly missing.

When utilities muddle through: pro-poor governance in Bangalore’s public water sector

The aim of this paper is to show how messy and slow paths to reform can have useful lessons for public-sector water utilities in developing countries, most of which continue to operate in a climate of muddling through. Using the case of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), this paper analyzes the shifts in policy and operations behind the BWSSB’s innovative work to connect the city’s slum dwellers to the piped water supply. Rather than routinely criticize public utilities for their failure to reach the poor, this paper argues that local successes that start small and are slow to diffuse should be recognized and disseminated across organizations. This is particularly important in the wake of the targets set in the Millennium Development Goals, which run the risk of masking both the importance of how public agencies learn and the factors driving genuine changes in organizational behaviour and urban governance.

When utilities muddle through: pro-poor governance in Bangalore's public water sector

When utilities muddle through: pro-poor governance in Bangalore's public water sector