Publication:
Reaching Unserved Communities in Africa with Basic Services : Can Small-Scale Private Service Providers Save the Day?

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files in English
English PDF (1.89 MB)
272 downloads
English Text (22.63 KB)
49 downloads
Date
2006-06
ISSN
Published
2006-06
Editor(s)
Abstract
With urban and especially periurban populations set to grow at unprecedented rates in Africa, and service coverage continuing to lag, governments and donors have begun to recognize that small-scale providers have an increasingly critical role to play. They have also begun to focus on the importance of creating an environment that enables these providers to supply good quality service. Most African countries face big deficits in infrastructure, and their efforts to scale up the services of small-scale service providers may be impeded by lack of capacity or resources or even by collusion and rent seeking by larger, formal service providers. Improving or extending the services of small scale service providers must therefore be part of-not a substitute for-reform of the infrastructure sector.
Link to Data Set
Citation
Kariuki, Mukami; Schwartz, Jordan; Schur, Michael. 2006. Reaching Unserved Communities in Africa with Basic Services : Can Small-Scale Private Service Providers Save the Day?. Gridlines; No. 9. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/10731 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    Small-Scale Private Service Providers of Water Supply and Electricity : A Review of Incidence, Structure, Pricing and Operating Characteristics
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-10) Kariuki, Mukami; Schwartz, Jordan
    This paper summarizes the key findings and conclusions of a literature review of small-scale private service providers (SPSPs) of water supply and electricity conducted over a six-month period in 2003. It draws on more than 400 documents-including journals, articles, reports, case studies and project reports-which have been disaggregated and referenced in a publicly available database. SPSPs appear most prevalent in countries with low coverage levels, ineffective public utilities that provide inadequate or partial services, and remote, difficult-to-access regions. SPSPs are especially prevalent in post-conflict countries and others with weak or failed states. Of the countries for which evidence of SPSPs was available, at least half fall into this category. SPSP provision of networked services appears to be significantly higher for electricity than for water supply. Most SPSPs identified through the literature are single-purpose entities established for the express purpose of delivering water supply or electricity. SPSPs take a variety of organizational forms, both for-profit and non-profit. As such, they are established for a variety of reasons, including: to meet consumer demand, respond to crises, or as part of larger business ventures. The technology used may extend upstream from distribution services to the means for producing or generating water supply or electricity, so capital needs vary accordingly. The majority of SPSPs have fewer than 50 employees and usually fewer than 10. A lack of affordable financing is a constraint for most SPSPs, which fund investments mainly through their own earnings and savings, loans from friends and family, and money borrowed from formal and informal lenders.
  • Publication
    Evaluation of Small-Scale Providers of Water Supply and Sanitation Services in Peru
    (Washington, DC, 2007-06) World Bank
    The Water and Sanitation Program (WSP), administered by the World Bank, helps countries find sustainable solutions to ensure efficient delivery of the quality water supply and sanitation services the population demands. The WSP is carrying out a systematic analysis in several countries to identify the role of small-scale providers (SSP) of water and sanitation services to poor populations not served by public and private entities. The study also examines how these operators fit in and respond to sector policies and the organization of the sector in each country. The objective of this study is to identify the reasons for the existence of small-scale providers of water SSP in Peru and to evaluate the experience of these operators, with an emphasis on their coverage, service quality, costs and sustainability. The evaluation also includes proposals to improve service to the market traditionally served by SSP. The study was divided into three phases: (a) a sector assessment to determine why sector policies and financial and institutional resources have not produced service provision to the entire population, particularly to the segments served by SSP; (b) surveys in 14 communities with SSP and an analysis of responses to questions pertaining to legal, technical, market and financial aspects, as well as consumers' perceptions; and (c) sector policy recommendations with respect to SSP, and suggestions for priority projects to support better service delivery.
  • Publication
    Engaging Local Private Operators in Water Supply and Sanitation Services
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-06) Triche, Thelma; Requeno, Sixto; Kariuki, Mukami
    Programs to reform urban utilities and to engage the private sector have tended to focus on large cities and on transactions with large foreign private operators. This is changing, as smaller towns and cities are growing rapidly in many developing countries. Concurrently, decentralization is shifting responsibility for services from national to smaller entities that often cannot finance and manage them effectively. Paralleling this trend, new service models in which local private firms contract with local governments or community associations to provide water supply and sanitation (WSS) services have been proposed in smaller urban contexts. The author examined how these challenges are being addressed in eight World Bank projects in Cambodia, Colombia, Paraguay, the Philippines, and Uganda. In all five countries, the government has sought public-private partnerships to promote sustainability, increase access to services (particularly for the poor), and, except in Cambodia, strengthen the role of local government. All five countries have policies that encourage greater access to services by the poor, to the extent consistent with the paramount goal of financial viability. Investment subsidies, particularly those targeting the poor, have played an important role in all cases.
  • Publication
    Rebuilding Infrastructure
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2006-03) Schwartz, Jordan; Halkyard, Pablo
    Postconflict countries have had difficulty attracting private investment in infrastructure, and their growth and stability have suffered as a result. But the success of a few countries hints at policy initiatives that governments could pursue to close this destabilizing gap in investment. The emphasis should be on making sure that sector reforms go far enough, getting the timing and sequencing of the reforms right, reducing investor risk, and recognizing the importance of small-scale providers.
  • Publication
    Town Water Supply and Sanitation : Challenges, Solutions, and Guidelines
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-06) Pilgrim, Nick; Roche, Bob; Kalbermatteni, John; Revels, Cathy; Kariuki, Mukami
    In Africa, Asia, and Latin America, the number of towns and their populations are expected to double within 15 years, and again within 30. Already, one-third of Africans and Asians live in towns of 2,000 to 200,000 people. This rapid urbanization makes improving water supply and sanitation services (WSS) central to economic growth and to achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. But sustainable provision of these services, particularly in small towns, presents challenges that may require new approaches to planning, financing, and service delivery. This guidance note on the principles of town WSS provides a methodology for setting targets and mobilizing resources to achieve these targets. The key activities proposed include: clarifying key actors' roles, consulting with users, defining service levels based on user preferences and willingness to pay, confirming investment sources, phasing in investments incrementally to reflect demand, analyzing costs and revenues realistically, identifying professional support, establishing systems for monitoring progress, and allowing for periodic review and revision of the business plan.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    Global Economic Prospects, June 2024
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-06-11) World Bank
    After several years of negative shocks, global growth is expected to hold steady in 2024 and then edge up in the next couple of years, in part aided by cautious monetary policy easing as inflation gradually declines. However, economic prospects are envisaged to remain tepid, especially in the most vulnerable countries. Risks to the outlook, while more balanced, are still tilted to the downside, including the possibility of escalating geopolitical tensions, further trade fragmentation, and higher-for-longer interest rates. Natural disasters related to climate change could also hinder activity. Subdued growth prospects across many emerging market and developing economies and continued risks underscore the need for decisive policy action at the global and national levels. Global Economic Prospects is a World Bank Group Flagship Report that examines global economic developments and prospects, with a special focus on emerging market and developing economies, on a semiannual basis (in January and June). Each edition includes analytical pieces on topical policy challenges faced by these economies.
  • Publication
    Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21) Luna-Bazaldua, Diego; Levin, Victoria; Liberman, Julia; Gala, Priyal Mukesh
    This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.
  • Publication
    The Mexican Social Protection System in Health
    (World Bank, Washington DC, 2013-01) Bonilla-Chacín, M.E.; Aguilera, Nelly
    With a population of 113 million and a per-capita Gross Domestic Product, or GDP of US$10,064 (current U.S. dollars), Mexico is one of the largest and highest-income countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The country has benefited from sustained economic growth during the last decade, which was temporarily interrupted by the financial and economic crisis. Real GDP is projected to grow 3.8 percent and 3.6 percent in 2012 and 2013, respectively (International Monetary Fund, or IMF 2012). Despite this growth, poverty in the country remains high; with half of the population living below the national poverty line. The country is also highly heterogeneous, with large socioeconomic differences across states and across urban and rural areas. In 2010, while the extreme poverty ratio in the Federal District and the states of Colima and Nuevo Leon was below 3 percent, in Chiapas, Guerrero, and Oaxaca it was 25 percent or higher. These large regional differences are also found in other indicators of well-being, such as years of schooling, housing conditions, and access to social services. This case study assesses key features and achievements of the Social Protection System in Health (Sistema de Proteccion Social en Salud) in Mexico, and particularly of its main pillar, Popular Health Insurance (Seguro Popular, PHI). It analyzes the contribution of this policy to the establishment and implementation of universal health coverage in Mexico. In 2003, with the reform of the General Health Law, the PHI was institutionalized as a subsidized health insurance scheme open to the population not covered by the social security schemes. Today, the PHI covers all of its intended affiliates, about 52 million people
  • Publication
    Guide to the Debt Management Performance Assessment Tool
    (Washington, DC, 2008-02-05) World Bank
    The purpose of this document is to provide guidance and supplemental information to assist with country assessments of debt management performance, using the Debt Management Performance Assessment (DeMPA) tool. The DeMPA is a methodology used for assessing public debt management performance through a comprehensive set of 15 performance indicators spanning the full range of government Debt Management (DeM) functions. It is based on the principles set out in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank guidelines for public debt management, initially published in 2001 and updated in 2003. It is modeled after the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) framework for performance measurement of public financial management. The DeMPA has been designed to be a user-friendly tool to undertake an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses in government DeM practices. This guide provides additional background and supporting information so that a no specialist in the area of debt management may undertake a country assessment effectively. The guide can be used by assessors in preparing for and undertaking an assessment. It is particularly useful for understanding the rationale for the inclusion of the indicators, the scoring methodology, and the list of supporting documents or evidence required, and the questions that could be asked for the assessment.
  • Publication
    Argentina Country Climate and Development Report
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11) World Bank Group
    The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.