Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone

This note summarizes lessons from the Water and Sanitation Program’s (WSP) technical assistance to improve performance and cost-recovery at the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) and Sierra Leone’s Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC). The focu...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hirn, Max, de Waal, Dominick
Format: Working Paper
Language:English
en_US
Published: World Bank, Nairobi, Kenya 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/07/26547994/improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewercorporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone-improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewer-corporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24786
id okr-10986-24786
recordtype oai_dc
spelling okr-10986-247862021-04-23T14:04:27Z Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone Hirn, Max de Waal, Dominick urban sanitation water supply public utilities cost recovery This note summarizes lessons from the Water and Sanitation Program’s (WSP) technical assistance to improve performance and cost-recovery at the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) and Sierra Leone’s Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC). The focus on cost-recovery reflects its critical importance to the viability of utilities. There are ‘almost no examples in developing countries’ of utilities ‘whose operating revenues are significantly below O&M costs and that are nevertheless able to develop and maintain their infrastructure and provide a reliable and efficient service’. (McPhail, et al., 2012). WSP’s technical assistance sought to strengthen reform efforts initiated by the management teams at LWSC and GVWC by improving the utilities’ ability to sustainably fund their operations. Three aspects of cost-recovery were prioritized: (a) improving metering, billing and collection processes (b) reducing commercial non-revenue water and (c) investigating options to expand the utilities’ revenue base by connecting new customers more effectively. 2016-08-03T21:23:24Z 2016-08-03T21:23:24Z 2015-07 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/07/26547994/improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewercorporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone-improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewer-corporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24786 English en_US CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Nairobi, Kenya Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Working Paper Africa Liberia Sierra Leone
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
en_US
topic urban sanitation
water supply
public utilities
cost recovery
spellingShingle urban sanitation
water supply
public utilities
cost recovery
Hirn, Max
de Waal, Dominick
Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
geographic_facet Africa
Liberia
Sierra Leone
description This note summarizes lessons from the Water and Sanitation Program’s (WSP) technical assistance to improve performance and cost-recovery at the Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation (LWSC) and Sierra Leone’s Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC). The focus on cost-recovery reflects its critical importance to the viability of utilities. There are ‘almost no examples in developing countries’ of utilities ‘whose operating revenues are significantly below O&M costs and that are nevertheless able to develop and maintain their infrastructure and provide a reliable and efficient service’. (McPhail, et al., 2012). WSP’s technical assistance sought to strengthen reform efforts initiated by the management teams at LWSC and GVWC by improving the utilities’ ability to sustainably fund their operations. Three aspects of cost-recovery were prioritized: (a) improving metering, billing and collection processes (b) reducing commercial non-revenue water and (c) investigating options to expand the utilities’ revenue base by connecting new customers more effectively.
format Working Paper
author Hirn, Max
de Waal, Dominick
author_facet Hirn, Max
de Waal, Dominick
author_sort Hirn, Max
title Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
title_short Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
title_full Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
title_fullStr Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
title_full_unstemmed Improving Utility Performance in Fragile Environments : Lessons from Liberia Water and Sewer Corporation in Liberia and Guma Valley Water Company in Sierra Leone
title_sort improving utility performance in fragile environments : lessons from liberia water and sewer corporation in liberia and guma valley water company in sierra leone
publisher World Bank, Nairobi, Kenya
publishDate 2016
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/07/26547994/improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewercorporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone-improving-utility-performance-fragile-environments-lessons-liberia-water-sewer-corporation-liberia-guma-valley-water-company-sierra-leone
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/24786
_version_ 1764457691308097536