Resilient urbanization and infrastructure governance: the case of the Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority, 1993–2007

Water Policy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 848-864 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Spencer ◽  
Bunnarith Meng
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Phnom Penh ◽  
Water Service ◽  
Government Institutions ◽  
The Government

Abstract After years of civil war, Cambodia began to focus on reconstruction and the development of its much-needed infrastructure across the country in the early 1990s. While most government institutions at the capital/provincial levels were crippled, the Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority (PPWSA) was able to provide excellent water service to most of the capital's residents, even the extremely poor. This case represents a traditional utility that was able to creatively experiment with new management practices and solicit community involvement in the administration of its work. It also illustrates the fact that under certain conditions, urban water services can actually generate revenues to subsidize other functions of the government. Specifically, it provides a useful illustration of a resilient governance of infrastructure able to adapt to rapidly changing and challenging circumstances.

Improving cost recovery in urban water supply service: an experience from India

Water Policy ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 685-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. P. Jayaramu ◽  
B. Manoj Kumar ◽  
K. K. Prasanna Rashmi
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Cost Recovery ◽  
Twin Cities ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Supply ◽  
Water Losses ◽  
Water Service ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

Poor cost recovery, owing to inherent problems associated with intermittent water service, is common in the majority of towns and cities in India. The water supply in twin cities of Hubli–Dharwad, located in North Karnataka, India, was characterized by several issues such as water losses, poor service delivery, low cost recovery and low investments. Provision of water service to the twin cities was the responsibility of the Hubli–Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) until 2003. The municipal revenues were affected by the large gap between revenue and expenditure on account of poor performance of the water division of the corporation, which further impeded the efforts to improve water service. In 2003, due to deteriorating performance with regard to water supply, the Government of Karnataka transferred the responsibility for maintenance of the water service to the Karnataka Urban Water Supply & Drainage Board (KUWS&DB). The KUWS&DB along with the HDMC adopted a multi-pronged strategy to improve cost recovery. The sustained efforts for over a decade (2003–2013) led to a gradual increase in full cost recovery from about 12% in 2003 to 47% in 2013. This study examines the impact of the multi-pronged approach adopted for improving cost recovery in water supply in the twin cities.

scholarly journals Drinking Water Supply to the Communes of the Couffo Department: Analysis of the Implementation of Programming

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Hortensia ACACHA
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Drinking Water Supply ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Water Service ◽  
Poor Access ◽  
Effective System ◽  
Set Up

To understand deeply the factors that explain the non-compliance with communal drinking water supply plans in the Couffo department in this paper, first we have just determined the level of drinking water service that each structureLFB and WHF9 provides to the population. Then the levels of access to drinking water in the localities were also determined. Finally, a diagnosis was made of the system set up in the Couffo department to monitor the implementation of municipal programming. This paper concludes that the actual construction of the works is also independent of the low access to drinking water services in the beneficiary localities at the 5% threshold. However, there is a 43.5% chance that the actual completion of the works depends on poor access to drinking water in the localities. In addition, it appears that the absence of an effective system for monitoring-evaluation of the implementation of communal planning not only favours the execution of unscheduled works but also the non-compliance with the order of priorities in localities to be equipped with WHF.

Sustainable, Resilient, and Reliable Urban Water Systems: Making a Case for 'One Water Approach'

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarin Raj Pokhrel ◽  
Gyan Chhipi-Shrestha ◽  
Kasun Hewage ◽  
Rehan Sadiq
Keyword(s):  
Water Resource Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
The United States ◽  
Visionary Leadership ◽  
Water Utilities ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Novel Technologies ◽  
Service Components

An urban water system (UWS) has three main service components: 1) drinking water, 2) wastewater, and 3) stormwater. Historically, each component in urban water development evolved over time with different objectives for “different” types of water. Even today, the trend continues, as different urban water services are managed in silos. This trend is less sustainable, resilient, and reliable mainly because of significant pressures on freshwater supplies exerted by increasing population, demand for high living standards, rapid urbanization, and climate change. To cope with these challenges, the conventional thinking necessitates a change. This paper identifies a number of significant research gaps related to inter-relationships among various UWS service components. An innovative paradigm - One Water Approach (OWA), which considers “urban water” as a single entity, is investigated. Currently, Australia, the United States, and Singapore are leading the pack to implement OWA, whereas only a few Canadian municipalities have embraced OWA at a very basic level. In the European Union nations, Amsterdam (Netherlands) emphasized the need for integrated water resource management in an urban environment. This review highlights the challenges in adopting OWA and also proposes guiding principles in ongoing water management practices. Institutional complexities involving an intricate regulatory structure for different UWS service components, a wider fragmentation in decision making at government levels, and insufficient stakeholder engagement within and between water utilities and other institutions present serious challenges. Various strategies such as, data sharing between water utilities, use of novel technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence, sensor technologies), and visionary leadership at different government levels have been identified as key drivers for the adoption and implementation of OWA. The authors believe that a paradigm shift from ‘conventional’ approach to OWA is needed to increase resiliency and reliability of water services and assist decision-makers of UWSs.

scholarly journals Analyzing rural drinking water services for district planning in Maharashtra, India

Water Policy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-51
Author(s):  
Ranu Singh ◽  
Rahul Brahmankar ◽  
J. V. R. Murty ◽  
Piyush Verma ◽  
James L. Wescoat
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Gis Mapping ◽  
Service Needs ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Water Service ◽  
Planning Approach ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Village

Abstract India has made good progress toward meeting basic standards of access to safe drinking water, but improved planning methods are needed to prioritize different levels and types of water service needs for public investment. This paper presents a planning approach for collecting, analyzing, and mapping drinking water service data at the village, block, and district levels in Pune district, Maharashtra, India. The planning approach created a mobile application for data collection by gram sevaks at the village level. It employed ranking methods developed with district officers to prioritize villages with the greatest needs, cluster analysis to distinguish different types of needs, and geographic information system (GIS) mapping to visualize the spatial distribution of those needs. This analysis shows that there are high levels of spatial heterogeneity in water services within, as well as between, blocks but also that there are broad patterns of priorities for planning and policy purposes. These priorities include water service needs in the Western Ghats, a combination of water source and service needs in dissected plateau lands, source strengthening in the eastern plains, and local hot spots in peri-urban areas. Based on this Pune district case study, the Government of Maharashtra is testing the approach in five additional districts.

scholarly journals Public-Private Partnership: Ghanaian Perspective of Urban Water Supply

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (3.18) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Adam Andani Mohammed ◽  
Abdallah Mpawenimana Saidi
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Public Private Partnership ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Supply ◽  
Private Partnership ◽  
Multi Stage ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Government

In Ghana, tariff of utilities including water is put below cost recovery levels such that government is unable to cope with the challenges in water supply. As such, the government resorts to private partnership to fund the gaps in the urban water supply in the country. The study adopted an integrative multi-stage critical review of relevant literature on public-private partnership in urban water supply. As such articles published between 2006 and 2017 were selected by specific inclusion criteria. Relevant articles on the topic were identified through references and citations. The paper examines the status and trend of water supply, reforms and management of urban water supply in Ghana. The study found problems like poor water supply system, inadequate human and economic resources as well as poor resource allocations and urban water management. 

PPP – policies, practices and problems in Ghana's urban water supply

Water Policy ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronika Fuest ◽  
Stefan A. Haffner
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Private Investment ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Supply ◽  
Water Sector ◽  
External Donor ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Economic Trends ◽  
The Government

Since the beginning of the 1990s, comprehensive reforms of the Ghanaian water sector were initiated by the Bretton Woods Institutions. The Government of Ghana was obliged to restructure the sector by establishing regulatory bodies, opening the sector to private sector participation and separating responsibilities for urban water supply from rural water supply. The parastatal Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) was created to be solely in charge of urban water supply. In spite of external assistance, GWCL continued to suffer from massive financial, managerial and technical problems. The gap between supply and demand increased while demand for potable water in the cities was on the rise and the supply systems were degenerating. In order to introduce greater efficiency, two options for public–private partnerships (PPP) were developed and contested, over a period of 10 years. At first private companies were invited to take over the GWCL by a lease contract. Numerous factors, among them a massive anti-privatisation campaign and global economic trends unfavourable to private investment, particularly in the water sector, caused a comprehensive revision of the policy and the modification of the PPP programme from lease to short-term management contract with an ensuing affermage concession in 2004. This process was to be supported by external donor agencies substantially upgrading the water supply infrastructure. However, it seemed doubtful if the recent policy would lead to a sustainable system of urban water supply and substantial improvements in the supply situation of the poor. Patronage relations were not sufficiently addressed and alternative PPP options based on local potential had not been considered. The case of Ghana raises issues of imposed PPP policies that are not based on adequate information about local, national and international framework conditions.

scholarly journals Urban Water Supply Sector Reform in Kathmandu Valley

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 130-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dol Prasad Chapagain
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Service Level ◽  
Institutional Structure ◽  
Kathmandu Valley ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Supply ◽  
Sector Reform ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Water Service

The sustainable governance of water resources requires that policy makers adapt to changing environmental and socioeconomic context. The efficient management of water resources is vital for its sustainable access and use. Therefore, adequate management practices are needed. Institutional reforms governing the water sector are undergoing remarkable changes and several efforts have been made in this direction for a long time to enhance the water service level. Currently, Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani limited (KUKL) is responsible for managing urban water and sanitation service to the Kathamndu Valley. It is the public company registered under the Nepal Government’s company Act 2006 and operates under public private partnership (PPP) modality, which is a part of urban water supply sector reforms of Kathamndu Valley. However, the basic requirement of water and sanitation service level has not changed sustainably. This paper focused to understand the institutional structure of the reforms and to examine the roles of institutions involved and stakeholders. This paper attempted to find out the real problem of water supply and why inadequate water service in Kathmandu valley though many institutional changes occurred. Literatures were reviewed and a descriptive, qualitative design was adopted to generate empirical data. This study finds that urban water supply sector reform of Kathmandu Valley is much closer to the Scott’s theory which consists of cognitive, normative and regulative structure and activities that work together provide stability and meaning to social behavior. However, findings are incongruent with this view point. Findings also show that focal problem of water supply is depleting water sources and widening the gap between demand and supply. Additionally, findings show that lack of coordination among stakeholders, weak institutional structure, unstable political scenario, and unplanned urbanization give rise to the problem, leading wider implications to the health of people and national economy. This paper discusses the results of the study and recommends improving the situation. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jie.v9i1.10678Journal of the Institute of Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 130–141

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