Colombo’s water supply: A paradigm for the future?

Asit K. Biswas and Cecilia Tortajada | Asian Water, 2003, Volume 18, Number 8, pages 15-18

Based on independent evaluations carried out by the Third World Centre for Water Management in Asia, Africa and Latin America, it is now evident that the paradigm that the private sector institutions will solve all the problems of water and wastewater management, efficiently, equitably and over a prolonged time period of 25-50 years of rapidly evolving national and global conditions, wherever they have had opportunities, is simply a non-tenable proposition. Private sector still has an important role to play, and their roles are likely to be much more significant in the future compared to what they are at present, but they are not going to be the panacea which many development institutions had proclaimed in the past, or are even arguing at present. We need to revise our views based on dogmas pro or anti public or private sector institutions, based on real facts and experiences.

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