Annual Report - What We Learned in 2010-11
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In 2010-11, relative to our size, BPD's behind the scenes role of mediating and “hand-holding” continued to make a substantial, but perhaps not easily quantifiable contribution to the water and sanitation sector. We continue to see our largest contribution as that of unpacking assumptions, providing food for thought and giving policymakers and practitioners ideas to play with and new ways of looking at what they are doing to advance service delivery.
Recognising a diverse range of stakeholders
For urban areas at least, we still maintain some links to a traditional view that accountable utilities offer the greatest economies of scale and the most straightforward set of relationships for delivering basic services to the poor. However, the reality is that for many cities and smaller settlements, fully networked services remain decades away. Dissecting the contributions that a range of other actors make has also meant making clear distinctions between water service providers - with their consistent and constant relationships with users - and sanitation services for the urban poor...
Appreciating the importance of informal influences on relationships
BPD remains dedicated to understanding the incentives and motivations to deliver services, as these enable us to design appropriate guidance to best shape each relationship. Learning has increasingly been informed by a greater appreciation for the less formal influences on relationships – e.g. understanding what drives regulation of and investment in public toilets in Ghana, or recognising that it is not always the contract that ultimately dictates the terms of a relationship...
To read more on the above topics, as well as on small town service delivery, the legacy of public-private partnerships and the impact of culture on relationships:
Download the full annual report