Essays on Water Utility Quality and Access

Abstract

Previous research on water and electric utilities in low-income countries has highlighted a potential trade-off between improving access to piped water for low-income households and cost recovery for utility providers. A crucial international development goal is to provide universal access to improved water sources, however, there is little consensus as to how universal access can be achieved. Connecting households with limited ability to pay monthly bills may decrease the ability of utility companies to recover costs and subsequently expand water coverage and upgrade the quality of service. Consequently, previous studies on public utilities have documented the persistence of a low-payment, low-quality equilibrium that is often observed in developing cities. This dissertation consists of three single-authored research projects that focus on different aspects of this problem. I examine the impact of high enforcement of water bill payment, the willingness to pay for improvements in piped-water service, and the effect of water supply metering. I study these questions in the context of a piped-water distribution network in Livingstone, Zambia. I identify the challenges for both improving the quality of piped-water service and expanding access, and I discuss potential ways in which both goals can be met.