IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/eurjdr/v31y2019i5d10.1057_s41287-019-00209-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From Rowdy Cartels to Organized Ones? The Transfer of Power in Urban Water Supply in Kenya

Author

Listed:
  • Akosua Sarpong Boakye-Ansah

    (IHE-Delft Institute for Water Education
    University of Amsterdam)

  • Klaas Schwartz

    (IHE-Delft Institute for Water Education
    University of Amsterdam)

  • Margreet Zwarteveen

    (IHE-Delft Institute for Water Education
    University of Amsterdam)

Abstract

Due to the limited presence of formal water utilities in urban low-income areas in many developing countries, water supply is carried out by informal private providers. As part of efforts towards improving water services to low-income areas, the activities of these informal providers are currently being acknowledged through various formalization approaches. This article investigates one such formalization approach, which consists of partnerships between the utility and the informal providers. This is an approach which allows the utility to partially withdraw from service provisioning to the low-income areas. Based on empirical evidence from three such partnerships in low-income areas in three Kenyan cities, we show in this article that formalization redefines and strengthens the legal capacity of informal providers to gain control of service provision in these areas. This can bring benefits for the utility as well as for consumers. However, it also risks legitimizing and furthering the exploitation of consumers by informal providers.

Suggested Citation

  • Akosua Sarpong Boakye-Ansah & Klaas Schwartz & Margreet Zwarteveen, 2019. "From Rowdy Cartels to Organized Ones? The Transfer of Power in Urban Water Supply in Kenya," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 31(5), pages 1246-1262, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:eurjdr:v:31:y:2019:i:5:d:10.1057_s41287-019-00209-3
    DOI: 10.1057/s41287-019-00209-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/s41287-019-00209-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/s41287-019-00209-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Luisa Moretto, 2007. "Urban governance and multilateral aid organizations: The case of informal water supply systems," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 2(4), pages 345-370, December.
    2. Schwartz, Klaas & Tutusaus, Mireia & Savelli, Elisa, 2017. "Water for the urban poor: Balancing financial and social objectives through service differentiation in the Kenyan water sector," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 22-31.
    3. Kariuki, Mukami & Schwartz, Jordan, 2005. "Small-scale private service providers of water supply and electricity : a review of incidence, structure, pricing, and operating characteristics," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3727, The World Bank.
    4. Maria Rusca & Klaas Schwartz & Lejla Hadzovic & Rhodante Ahlers, 2015. "Adapting Generic Models through Bricolage: Elite Capture of Water Users Associations in Peri-urban Lilongwe," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 27(5), pages 777-792, December.
    5. Rhodante Ahlers & Valeria Perez G�ida & Maria Rusca & Klaas Schwartz, 2013. "Unleashing Entrepreneurs or Controlling Unruly Providers? The Formalisation of Small-scale Water Providers in Greater Maputo, Mozambique," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(4), pages 470-482, April.
    6. Johnstone, Nick & Wood, Libby & Hearne, Robert R., 1999. "The Regulation of Private Sector Participation in Urban Water Supply and Sanitation: Realising Social and Environmental Objectives in Developing Countries," Discussion Papers 24142, International Institute for Environment and Development, Environmental Economics Programme.
    7. Anastasia Angueletou-Marteau, 2008. "Informal water suppliers meeting water needs in the peri-urban territories of Mumbai, an Indian perspective," Post-Print halshs-00363464, HAL.
    8. Berg, Sanford V & Mugisha, Silver, 2010. "Pro-poor water service strategies in developing countries: promoting justice in Uganda’s urban project," MPRA Paper 32888, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Furlong, Kathryn, 2014. "STS beyond the “modern infrastructure ideal”: Extending theory by engaging with infrastructure challenges in the South," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 139-147.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Boakye-Ansah, Akosua Sarpong & Schwartz, Klaas & Zwarteveen, Margreet, 2020. "Aligning stakeholder interests: How ‘appropriate’ technologies have become the accepted water infrastructure solutions for low-income areas," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    2. Nilsson, David & Blomkvist, Pär, 2021. "Is the self-read water meter a pro-poor innovation? Evidence from a low-income settlement in Nairobi," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    3. Schwartz, Klaas & Boakye-Ansah, Akosua, 2023. "Pragmatism as an approach for decision-making: Why two Kenyan water utilities opted for pre-paid water dispensers," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    4. Adrian Mallory & Anna Mdee & Dorice Agol & Leonie Hyde‐Smith & Domenic Kiogora & Joy Riungu & Alison Parker, 2022. "The potential for scaling up container‐based sanitation in informal settlements in Kenya," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(7), pages 1347-1361, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cherunya, Pauline C. & Ahlborg, Helene & Truffer, Bernhard, 2020. "Anchoring innovations in oscillating domestic spaces: Why sanitation service offerings fail in informal settlements," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(1).
    2. Lejla H Pihljak & Maria Rusca & Cecilia Alda-Vidal & Klaas Schwartz, 2021. "Everyday practices in the production of uneven water pricing regimes in Lilongwe, Malawi," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 39(2), pages 300-317, March.
    3. Nilsson, David & Blomkvist, Pär, 2021. "Is the self-read water meter a pro-poor innovation? Evidence from a low-income settlement in Nairobi," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    4. Joshi, Nupur & Gerlak, Andrea K. & Hannah, Corrie & Lopus, Sara & Krell, Natasha & Evans, Tom, 2023. "Water insecurity, housing tenure, and the role of informal water services in Nairobi’s slum settlements," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    5. Blomkvist, Pär & Nilsson, David & Juma, Benard & Sitoki, Lewis, 2020. "Bridging the critical interface: Ambidextrous innovation for water provision in Nairobi's informal settlements," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    6. Francis Onditi & Moses Obimbo & Samson Kinyanjui Muchina & Israel Nyadera, 2020. "Modeling a Pandemic (COVID-19) Management Strategy for Urban Slums Using Social Geometry Framework," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 32(5), pages 1450-1475, December.
    7. Luisa Moretto, 2007. "Urban governance and multilateral aid organizations: The case of informal water supply systems," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 2(4), pages 345-370, December.
    8. Georg Meran & Markus Siehlow & Christian von Hirschhausen, 2021. "Pipes, Taps, and Vendors: An Integrated Water Management Approach," Water Economics and Policy (WEP), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 7(04), pages 1-29, October.
    9. Weststrate, Johanna & Gianoli, Alberto & Eshuis, Jasper & Dijkstra, Geske & Cossa, Idrisse Jorge & Rusca, Maria, 2019. "The regulation of onsite sanitation in Maputo, Mozambique," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    10. Mary Lawhon & Gloria Nsangi Nakyagaba & Timos Karpouzoglou, 2023. "Towards a modest imaginary? Sanitation in Kampala beyond the modern infrastructure ideal," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 60(1), pages 146-165, January.
    11. Federica Natalia Rosati & Luisa Moretto & Jacques Teller, 2020. "An incremental approach to service co-production: unfolding the co-evolution of the built environment and water and sanitation infrastructures," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/314020, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    12. Aparna Sawhney & Rupa Chanda, 2003. "Trade in environmental services: opportunities and constraints," Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, New Delhi Working Papers 102, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, New Delhi, India.
    13. Hanna Berkel, 2018. "The costs and benefits of formalization for firms: A mixed-methods study on Mozambique," WIDER Working Paper Series 159, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    14. Boakye-Ansah, Akosua Sarpong & Schwartz, Klaas & Zwarteveen, Margreet, 2020. "Aligning stakeholder interests: How ‘appropriate’ technologies have become the accepted water infrastructure solutions for low-income areas," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    15. Sima, Laura C. & Kelner-Levine, Evan & Eckelman, Matthew J. & McCarty, Kathleen M. & Elimelech, Menachem, 2013. "Water flows, energy demand, and market analysis of the informal water sector in Kisumu, Kenya," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 137-144.
    16. Eriksen, Siri & Schipper, E. Lisa F. & Scoville-Simonds, Morgan & Vincent, Katharine & Adam, Hans Nicolai & Brooks, Nick & Harding, Brian & Khatri, Dil & Lenaerts, Lutgart & Liverman, Diana & Mills-No, 2021. "Adaptation interventions and their effect on vulnerability in developing countries: Help, hindrance or irrelevance?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    17. Auriol, Emmanuelle & Blanc, Aymeric, 2009. "Capture and corruption in public utilities: The cases of water and electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 17(2), pages 203-216, June.
    18. David Ockwell & Joanes Atela & Kennedy Mbeva & Victoria Chengo & Rob Byrne & Rachael Durrant & Victoria Kasprowicz & Adrian Ely, 2019. "Can Pay-As-You-Go, Digitally Enabled Business Models Support Sustainability Transformations in Developing Countries? Outstanding Questions and a Theoretical Basis for Future Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-21, April.
    19. Mikail Pehlivan & Nazan Susam, 2022. "Transformation of Water Services: Lessons Learned from Water Privatization in Multiple Countries," Journal of Economy Culture and Society, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 65(65), pages 129-160, June.
    20. Banerjee, Sudeshna & Wodon, Quentin & Diallo, Amadou & Pushak, Taras & Uddin, Elal & Tsimpo, Clarence & Foster, Vivien, 2008. "Access, affordability, and alternatives: Modern infrastructure services in Africa," MPRA Paper 27740, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:eurjdr:v:31:y:2019:i:5:d:10.1057_s41287-019-00209-3. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.