Now that you have completed this study session, you can assess how well you have achieved its Learning Outcomes by answering these.

From the report by Marin (2009) on public–private partnerships, which of the following statements are false? Give reasons why they are so.

  1. A public–private partnership always results in more people having access to piped water.
  2. Public–private partnerships often result in improved service quality.
  3. Public–private partnerships are very efficient at collecting payments but don’t worry about non-revenue water.
  4. In public–private partnerships labour productivity increases, due only to reduction in staff numbers.
  5. The figures indicate that public–private partnerships are becoming more popular.

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1) is false. Increased access comes about only when the public partner invests the money.

3) is false. Because they are concerned about income, public–private partnerships pay a lot of attention to reducing non-revenue water.

4) is false. Labour productivity increases due to two factors: a reduction in staff numbers and an increase in the number of customers.

List and briefly describe the measures by which the success or otherwise of a public–private partnership providing water supply services can be assessed.

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The following criteria may be used to measure the success of a PPP providing water supply.

  • Accessibility – the extent of coverage of the population, and the distance to the water point.
  • Affordability – the cost of the water needed should be less than 5% of the household’s income.
  • Cost recovery – the cost of providing the water should be claimed back from the population.
  • Minimisation of non-revenue water – this should be reduced to 15% or less.
  • Water quality – the water should meet national standards for quality.
  • Operational efficiency – the quantity of water supplied per capita, and the duration of water supply per day.

Name two types of microenterprise that supply water to poor people in low-income countries towns and cities. What is the main disadvantage that these consumers face? According to Sharma and Bereket (2008), what would help to overcome the above disadvantage?

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  • The microenterprises concerned are water kiosks and water vendors.
  • The main disadvantage consumers face is the high cost of the water.
  • This disadvantage can be overcome by assistance provided to the consumers to obtain their own private water connections.

Last modified: Monday, 3 October 2016, 7:45 AM