Water service to the urban poor presents challenges to political leaders, regulators and managers. We identify technology mixes of yard taps, public water points (with and without pre-paid meters) to meet alternative constraints, and reflecting populations served and investment requirements....

This study provides a comprehensive efficiency analysis of water service providers in six countries in the Central American region. Pressures for sector reform have stimulated interest in identifying and understanding the factors that can contribute to network expansion, improved service...

The achievement of Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) by 2015 requires significant managerial innovation and creativity, especially in low-income countries where utility inefficiencies are still prevalent. This paper describes approaches that have been used in Uganda's National Water and...

Regulators can utilize a number of alternative methodologies for comparing firm efficiency, but these approaches need to be robust to be accepted by stakeholders. This study evaluates the consistency of water utility performance rankings for Peruvian water utilities. The results indicate that...

The water sector has economic and symbolic importance for citizens in developing countries. Water utility benchmarking is no panacea for improving water sector performance. Nevertheless, it can contribute to addressing four sources of conflict in the design and implementation of policies:...

Small Island Developing states (SIDs) present challenges for analysts and policy-makers attempting to strengthen island-nation infrastructure. This study applies lessons to one SID to illustrate how benchmarking can improve the performance of water utilities. The archipelago-nation of Cape Verde...

This paper updates the literature on water utility benchmarking studies carried out worldwide, focusing on scale and scope economies. Using meta-regression analysis, the study investigates which variables from published studies influence these economies. Our analysis led to several conclusions....