You have reached iGreens.org.uk. In December 2006 we moved to iGreens.org with faster servers and discussion boards. Click here to follow us.
|
You have reached iGreens.org.uk. In December 2006 we moved to iGreens.org with faster servers and discussion boards. Click here to follow us. |
Johannesburg 27 August 2002Providing clean water for the world’s poor was the main
topic on Monday. Few African
cities have adequate drinking water. In many, up to 60% of people live in
unplanned settlements, where more often than not there is not a single tap.
The reason is clear. Governments
are generally responsible for providing water, and they don't do it reliably.
If private companies had secure property rights they would be
delighted to build reservoirs, pipes and treatment plants. Unfortunately few delegates have figured this out.
The French company Francaise de Developement, financed by their
government, has just proudly announced plans to bung Africa another €66M, as
if that was likely to do any good! The UN Foundation, created by media mogul Ted Turner, is
also planning to give governments money to improve water supplies in eight
African cities - Accra, Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Dakar, Dar es Salaam,
Johannesburg, Lusaka and Nairobi. The mainstream environmentalists are applauding. Canadian activist Maude Barlow, author of the book "Blue Gold," is a famously slow learner. In her book subtitled: "The Fight to Stop the Corporate Theft of the World's Water" she argues that water must remain firmly in public hands. Woe betide anyone unfortunate enough to live in a country
that follows her advice A few years ago, facing chronic water shortages, the
province of Cochabamba, in Bolivia, sold its shambolic public water companies to
a private company Bechtel. Although the water
soon started flowing a few consumers objected when the company raised
rates to commercial levels. The same
thing happened in England before people saw the real benefits from privatisation.
Unfortunately the Bolivian government was made of less stern stuff than Mrs.
Thatcher! Under pressure from a few protests and with Ms. Barlow banging on, the
private water company was brought back into state control via a co-operative
structure. At the time Barlow praised the re-nationalisation in
glowing terms, but today even she acknowledges that the co-operative is a shambles, with neither capital nor experience. Unfortunately she hasn't
learnt the real lesson. Her present suggestion is for international
agencies to help local authorities run their water utilities! Fortunately some Africans are
brighter. Anna Tibaijuka, executive director of the UN Centre for Human Settlements says; "We have to change the mentality that water is free
and limitless. If one wants to sit in the bathtub the whole day, one must pay
higher water rates. "It is imperative to rehabilitate plants, pipes and
the distribution network and manage catchment areas and sources more
efficiently". She says privatisation is not inherently bad as critics
assume. "In Nairobi, in some areas, there is water being
supplied side by side by the municipality and private companies. The private
companies provide steady supplies, unlike the municipality, and their rates are
very competitive." “In many big cities, up to half the water is lost to
leaks and broken mains. Billing is often chaotic. Public water utilities,
usually short of cash and expertise, struggle to meet fast-growing demand.” Ghana's Works and Housing Minister Yaw Barimah goes
further. He said that distribution losses are huge in the water-deficient
capital city of Accra. "Most of the pipes date back 70 or 80 years and they
are crying out for replacement," he said, adding: "Fifty percent of
the water produced by the Ghana Water Company is unaccounted for."
Barimah said the government is toying with the idea of privatising water
distribution. Well done Tibaijuka and Barimah. If you go on talking like this perhaps even the BBC
will notice, and not all the cost of the summit will have been in vain! Jim Thornton, Nottingham. 27 August 2002. |
|
You have reached iGreens.org.uk. In December 2006 we moved to iGreens.org with faster servers and discussion boards. Click here to follow us.
Send mail to enquiries@igreens.org.uk
with
questions or comments about this web site.
|