Water is life and its provision is vital not only for purposes of sustaining life but also for convenience, health, sanitation and economic well being. The United Nations estimates that over one billion people living in developing countries lack access to safe water, with a substantialp roportion of thesel iving in Africa. As a consequenceo f urbanisation and rapid growth of cities, urban water utilities in developing countries face an enormous challenge in meeting the water requirements of urban dwellers. The challenge is even greater when the prevailing poverty, high levels of debt and declining funding (in form of official developmenta ssistance)a re taken into account. In particular, Sub-Saharan Africa is facing low levels of water services and water supply coverage. Under thesec ircumstancesa, key objective for water utilities in Sub-SaharanA frica is to provide services to the growing urban population, including the poor, in a financially sustainable manner. To achieve this objective, utility managers need innovative methods of financing and managing urban water services. A systematic approach consisting of market segmentation, service and price differentiation is proposed as a suitable method of managing urban water services in Sub-Saharan Africa. This approach is the subject under investigation in the research, which is reported in this thesis. Using primarily the case study research methodology but also incorporating surveys, interviews and f6cus group discussions within the case study, research was carried out to investigate the use of a systematic approach consisting of segmentation, service and price differentiation for managing urban water services in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa. The detailed field research was carried out in Kenya and South Africa, and two case studies were prepared. Among the key findings was that this approach offers a framework for water utilities to structure their service delivery with appropriate pricing and serve more customers (including people living in informal settlements) at affordable cost, while achieving financial sustainability. The finding leads to the conclusion that segmentation, service and price differentiation is a suitable methodology that utilities can use to improve urban water servicesi n Sub-SaharanA frica.

For the past 30 years the dominant approach to managing rural water services in low and lower middle income countries has been the community management approach. Yet there is increasing evidence the model is not fit for purpose as too many services fail. The next generation ideas for community management emphasise the need for continuous on-going support to communities – an approach known as the community management plus approach. This thesis tests and develops this next generation community management plus paradigm. It analyses field data from twenty case studies of ‘reportedly successful’ community management programmes across seventeen states in India. Bringing together data from 2,355 household surveys, 272 interviews and 130 focus groups it provides a synthesis that assesses the type and level of support found in successful examples of community management. The evidence from these case studies demonstrates that communities receive significant recurrent subsidy covering between 7-48% of operational expenditure. This is in marked contrast to the conventional principles of community management whereby communities cover 100% of these costs. Analysis of organisation types also shows how community management has been shaped by the devolution of governance in rural India. Many community management programmes involve a structural overlap between the local self- government institution of the Gram Panchayat and water committees. The thesis argues this represents a shift to the ‘institutionalised co-production’ of rural water services, involving both the state and private citizens in public service delivery. Overall, the research shows that successful community management in India involves continuous on-going support as per the community management plus paradigm. However this has required the nesting of the model within the broader system of local self-government which blurs the lines between public and community management.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This study analyses the relationship between the manner of citizens’ engagement with the state and the level of service delivery they experience in their everyday lives, as residents of Khayelitsha. The phenomena of so-called ‘service delivery’ protests across South Africa have now become a fixture of South African politics. Khayelitsha is one of the sites with frequent protests in Cape Town and is inhabited by poor people, 70 percent of whom live in informal settlements. While the lack of municipal services is undoubtedly a major problem for many poor people in South Africa, thus far, few studies have been dedicated to investigate empirically this alleged link between service delivery and protest activity. The study utilizes mostly quantitative analysis techniques such as regression analysis and path analysis to discover the form and strength of linkages between the service delivery and participation forms. While residents of informal settlements and therefore poorer services were more prone to engage in protests and thus reinforcing the service delivery hypothesis, this relationship was relatively weak in regression analysis. What is more important than the service delivery variables such as water services was the level of cognitive awareness exemplified by the level of political engagement and awareness on the one hand and level of community engagement in terms of attendance of community meetings and membership of different organizations. In summary the study found relatively weak evidence to support the service delivery hypothesis and stronger evidence for the importance of cognitive awareness and resource mobilization theories in Khayelitsha as the key determinant of protest activity. / South Africa

Thesis (M. Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2016 / The provision of basic water services delivery to all South African citizens is one of the biggest challenges of many local municipalities. The objective of this study was to explore water services delivery in the communities of Mukondeni village in Limpopo Province. The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) has the responsibility to ensure that all South Africans have access to basic water supply and emphasizes on speedy delivery of water and sanitation services. The Department of Water Affairs (DWA) is mandated with managing and protecting the country‘s water resources, with the National Regulator responsible for systems of accountability. The study evaluated the respondents of the communities, authorities responsible in water services delivery and the nature of the resources in water supply. The outcome of the study shows that, the communities and water services department (workers) were dissatisfied with the current water services delivery. Direct involvement, coordination and co-operation by the government, as well as developing a culture of empowering the local communities should bring better water services delivery to the village and to Mutale Local Municipality in general. The study recommends that one main pipeline from the plant to Mukondeni village should be installed and awareness campaigns for efficient and effective use of water should be launched. This should help ease and improve the present precarious situation.

Masters in Public Administration - MPA / The focus of the study is on the implementation of public policies through provision of basic services such as water and sanitation in the City of Cape Town. The case study of the research is the informal settlements of Khayelitsha area which falls under the jurisdiction of the City of Cape Town. The study identified and analysed the socioeconomic conditions of the people living in the informal settlements of Khayelitsha and the impact of such conditions to their lives. The study emphasizes the role of all spheres of government in the implementation of public policies.The study identified various challenges faced by government in the implementation of public policies, particularly at local government level. Among the challenges is the lack of communication, lack of public participation and lack of capacity. The study emphasizes the importance of intergovernmental relations and cooperate governance in order to achieve the objectives of good governance and effective and efficient service delivery. The study reveals that civil society plays an important role in the implementation of public policies and also holds the government accountable to the people. It is important to indicate that government cannot achieve the goals and objectives of providing clean water and adequate sanitation facilities if communities do not form part of the structures that implement projects and programmes of development in their respective areas.Hence, the study emphasizes the importance of communication and consultation of communities on issues that directly affect them. The study emphasizes the fact that communities need to take control of the resources and infrastructure provided to them in order to avoid unnecessary expenditure of replacing and repairing resources damaged and destroyed by the very same community.

A perspectiva de elaborar planejamentos em áreas de floresta a partir da concepção de serviços ecossistêmicos, principalmente serviços hídricos, expandiu-se em muito pouco tempo, principalmente porque essa estratégia evidencia, claramente, como a perda desse sistema natural por atividades do homem pode causar perdas irreparáveis ao seu próprio bem-estar. Trabalhar planejamento ambiental sob esse enfoque exige adoção de uma forte base teórica sobre serviços hídricos; um modelo que permita comparar paisagens em diferentes condições de uso e conservação de floresta; e clareza sobre o tipo de valoração empregado na identificação dos limites de perdas de floresta, de forma a não comprometer a oferta necessária desses serviços. Este estudo defende que em Mata Atlântica é possível reconhecer a dependência direta entre quantidades de floresta, de usos humanos e de serviços hídricos em bacias hidrográficas e, por ela, valorar a oferta desses serviços e comparar paisagens. Para fortalecer esse argumento foram selecionadas 27 unidades territoriais da região do Vale do Paraíba (São Paulo, Br) a partir da aplicação de um modelo espacial baseado na extração de bacias hidrográficas originadas da intersecção de hexágonos com percentuais de floresta, campo antrópico e silvicultura. Em cada unidade foram obtidos dados de 13 parâmetros físico-quimico-biológicos nas estações seca e chuvosa, que foram hierarquizados pelo Random Forest de forma a aferir suas relações com a quantidade de floresta e formular índices de sete serviços hídricos. Os parâmetros que se mostraram mais adequados para monitoramento dos serviços hídricos frente aos ganhos de floresta, com grande peso hierárquico na formulação dos índices, foram turbidez, condutividade e sólidos totais dissolvidos. Os índices obtidos permitiram apontar que para manter 50% do potencial total dos sete serviços hídricos em paisagens com campos antrópicos são necessárias mais de 40% de cobertura florestal, mas os melhores ganhos potenciais de serviços ocorreram a partir de 60%. Quando a unidade territorial é a combinação entre floresta e silvicultura há maior oferta de serviços hídricos com menor quantidade de floresta, porém o manejo da madeira e a presença de áreas degradadas mudaram completamente esse cenário favorável / The possibility of elaborate planning in forest areas from notion of ecosystem services, especially water services, expanded in a short time, mainly because this strategy shows how the loss of this natural system by human activities can cause losses irreparable to their own well-being. Working environmental planning under this approach requires the adoption of a strong theoretical basis for water services; a model for comparing landscapes under different conditions of use and conservation of forest; and insight about the type of valuation used in the identification of the limits of forest loss in order not to compromise the necessary supply of these services. This study argued that in the Atlantic Forest is possible to recognize the direct dependency between amounts of forest, human uses and water services in watersheds and, through it, assess the provision of these services and compare landscapes. In order to defend this argument were selected 27 territorial units of the Vale do Paraíba region (Sao Paulo, Brazil) from the application of a spatial model based on the extraction of river basins originating hexagons intersection with percentages of forest, anthropic field and forestry. In each unit were obtained data from 13 physical-chemical-biological parameters in two seasons, which were ranked by Random Forest in order to support its relations with the amount of forest as well as the index formulation for seven water services. The parameters more suitable for monitoring water in front of services to forest gains, and with large hierarchical influence the formulation of the indices, were turbidity, conductivity and total dissolved solids. The indices obtained allowed to point out that to keep 50% of the total potential of the seven water services in landscapes with anthropic fields (pasture) are required more than 40% forest cover, but the best servi4e potential gains occurred from 60%. When the territorial unit is a combination of forest and forestry there is more supply of water services with less forest, but the management of timber and the presence of degraded areas completely changed this favorable scenario

A perspectiva de elaborar planejamentos em áreas de floresta a partir da concepção de serviços ecossistêmicos, principalmente serviços hídricos, expandiu-se em muito pouco tempo, principalmente porque essa estratégia evidencia, claramente, como a perda desse sistema natural por atividades do homem pode causar perdas irreparáveis ao seu próprio bem-estar. Trabalhar planejamento ambiental sob esse enfoque exige adoção de uma forte base teórica sobre serviços hídricos; um modelo que permita comparar paisagens em diferentes condições de uso e conservação de floresta; e clareza sobre o tipo de valoração empregado na identificação dos limites de perdas de floresta, de forma a não comprometer a oferta necessária desses serviços. Este estudo defende que em Mata Atlântica é possível reconhecer a dependência direta entre quantidades de floresta, de usos humanos e de serviços hídricos em bacias hidrográficas e, por ela, valorar a oferta desses serviços e comparar paisagens. Para fortalecer esse argumento foram selecionadas 27 unidades territoriais da região do Vale do Paraíba (São Paulo, Br) a partir da aplicação de um modelo espacial baseado na extração de bacias hidrográficas originadas da intersecção de hexágonos com percentuais de floresta, campo antrópico e silvicultura. Em cada unidade foram obtidos dados de 13 parâmetros físico-quimico-biológicos nas estações seca e chuvosa, que foram hierarquizados pelo Random Forest de forma a aferir suas relações com a quantidade de floresta e formular índices de sete serviços hídricos. Os parâmetros que se mostraram mais adequados para monitoramento dos serviços hídricos frente aos ganhos de floresta, com grande peso hierárquico na formulação dos índices, foram turbidez, condutividade e sólidos totais dissolvidos. Os índices obtidos permitiram apontar que para manter 50% do potencial total dos sete serviços hídricos em paisagens com campos antrópicos são necessárias mais de 40% de cobertura florestal, mas os melhores ganhos potenciais de serviços ocorreram a partir de 60%. Quando a unidade territorial é a combinação entre floresta e silvicultura há maior oferta de serviços hídricos com menor quantidade de floresta, porém o manejo da madeira e a presença de áreas degradadas mudaram completamente esse cenário favorável / The possibility of elaborate planning in forest areas from notion of ecosystem services, especially water services, expanded in a short time, mainly because this strategy shows how the loss of this natural system by human activities can cause losses irreparable to their own well-being. Working environmental planning under this approach requires the adoption of a strong theoretical basis for water services; a model for comparing landscapes under different conditions of use and conservation of forest; and insight about the type of valuation used in the identification of the limits of forest loss in order not to compromise the necessary supply of these services. This study argued that in the Atlantic Forest is possible to recognize the direct dependency between amounts of forest, human uses and water services in watersheds and, through it, assess the provision of these services and compare landscapes. In order to defend this argument were selected 27 territorial units of the Vale do Paraíba region (Sao Paulo, Brazil) from the application of a spatial model based on the extraction of river basins originating hexagons intersection with percentages of forest, anthropic field and forestry. In each unit were obtained data from 13 physical-chemical-biological parameters in two seasons, which were ranked by Random Forest in order to support its relations with the amount of forest as well as the index formulation for seven water services. The parameters more suitable for monitoring water in front of services to forest gains, and with large hierarchical influence the formulation of the indices, were turbidity, conductivity and total dissolved solids. The indices obtained allowed to point out that to keep 50% of the total potential of the seven water services in landscapes with anthropic fields (pasture) are required more than 40% forest cover, but the best servi4e potential gains occurred from 60%. When the territorial unit is a combination of forest and forestry there is more supply of water services with less forest, but the management of timber and the presence of degraded areas completely changed this favorable scenario

Thesis (MBA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2007 / The residents of Lebowakgomo in Lepelle-Nkumpi Municipality experience numerous inequalities in relation to water services provision. Some of the residents protest towards the inequalities through refusal to pay for the water services. The confrontational non paying residents field questions which the municipality can hardly answer. The problem of refusal to pay is of the magnitude that recently the municipality had to go house-to-house pleading with the inhabitants to pay if the municipality was to continue to provide water services. The specific objectives of this study were three-fold: (1) to determine water service quality using residents’ perceptions on water services in Lebowakgomo, (2) to determine residents’ expectations and perceptions on water services in Lebowakgomo, and (3) to determine the residents’ perceptions on water service quality and customer satisfaction in Lebowakgomo using age, gender, qualification and suburb. A questionnaire comprising five dimensions, namely, tangibles, reliability, assurance, empathy and responsiveness, was compiled to collect data from three suburbs of Lebowakgomo in Lepelle-Nkumpi Municipality. The original sample size was 120, with 9 becoming spoiled due to missing data. The independent variables comprised age, qualification, suburb and gender. Most of the data were analysed for kurtosis and skewness and with the exception of one variable, the rest of the data did not conform to parametric analysis criteria. The major findings of this study indicated overall negative perceptions of residents’ on four dimensions of empathy, reliability, responsiveness and assurance on water service quality which implied that the residents were dissatisfied with the service and called on management to use SERVQUAL as a valid model of assessment to identify areas requiring immediate attention for service improvement. On the other contra positive it was revealed that the municipality was doing well on the tangibles dimension. ix The study recommended use of SERVQUAL in measuring quality of other services within the constitutional competencies of the municipality and further research to investigate age contribution to service quality.

The Blue Drop Incentive-based Regulation (programme) was introduced in 2008 by the Department of Water Affairs (DWA) with the aim of maintaining and improving drinking water quality in South Africa. The programme is being implemented in order to protect consumers from water services providers who might not act in the interest of the public. For some years the confidence level of the public regarding the quality of drinking water in South Africa has not been at the desired level. The programme involves annual assessment of water services authorities by the DWA. In order for water services authorities to be awarded the Blue Drop status they are required to comply 95% in terms of the criteria used in the assessments. During the first and second years of Blue Drop assessments a number of municipalities chose not to be assessed but quite a few achieved the Blue Drop status nationally. It is against this background that the researcher undertook a study to determine how water services employees in municipalities perceive the Blue Drop programme. To achieve the study objective the mixed method involving quantitative and qualitative methodologies was employed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with supervisors and management while water treatment works employees completed a survey questionnaire. The qualitative and quantitative data analysis brought to light the following core findings: * The Blue Drop programme has the support of the overwhelming majority of employees who participated in the research. They perceive the programme as an inspiration for improved performance of the water services function in municipalities. * There is a lack of or poor understanding of the water sector legal framework including the Blue Drop assessment criteria by some participating employees. * There is a perceived lack of management and political leadership involvement and support for the water service function. Although the Blue Drop programme has been reported to be an excellent intervention by nearly all the participants, there are certain aspects that can be improved and are dealt with in the last chapter of the mini-dissertation. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

The Blue Drop Incentive-based Regulation (programme) was introduced in 2008 by the Department of Water Affairs (DWA) with the aim of maintaining and improving drinking water quality in South Africa. The programme is being implemented in order to protect consumers from water services providers who might not act in the interest of the public. For some years the confidence level of the public regarding the quality of drinking water in South Africa has not been at the desired level. The programme involves annual assessment of water services authorities by the DWA. In order for water services authorities to be awarded the Blue Drop status they are required to comply 95% in terms of the criteria used in the assessments. During the first and second years of Blue Drop assessments a number of municipalities chose not to be assessed but quite a few achieved the Blue Drop status nationally. It is against this background that the researcher undertook a study to determine how water services employees in municipalities perceive the Blue Drop programme. To achieve the study objective the mixed method involving quantitative and qualitative methodologies was employed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with supervisors and management while water treatment works employees completed a survey questionnaire. The qualitative and quantitative data analysis brought to light the following core findings: * The Blue Drop programme has the support of the overwhelming majority of employees who participated in the research. They perceive the programme as an inspiration for improved performance of the water services function in municipalities. * There is a lack of or poor understanding of the water sector legal framework including the Blue Drop assessment criteria by some participating employees. * There is a perceived lack of management and political leadership involvement and support for the water service function. Although the Blue Drop programme has been reported to be an excellent intervention by nearly all the participants, there are certain aspects that can be improved and are dealt with in the last chapter of the mini-dissertation. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012