Urban water in Zimbabwe : performance and capacity analysis

This report focuses on urban drinking water and sanitation in Zimbabwe. Studies were undertaken in two towns, Bulawayo and Kariba, and in the central government ministries that are concerned with the urban water sector. Among the issues arising from the research was on the one hand, the national level issue of the reform of the bulk water supply and regulatory mechanisms; and on the other hand, the issue of direct delivery of water at town level. In the first chapter some background information on the economic and political context of Zimbabwe and on key issues in the water sector is provided. Chapter two looks into the technical case for government involvement in the sector, bearing in mind the particularities of the Zimbabwean context, and describes the technical argument for reform of the sector. Chapter three describes the organizational arrangements for water supply at the national and town level and how they have evolved. Chapter four analyses the overall performance of these arrangements, the forces that underlie existing practice and the pressures for organizational reform. The rest of the document consists of the more detailed case studies of the operation of the elements of the water supply system, beginning with a detailed case study of the City of Bulawayo and tracing back from that the role of central government. The final chapter of the document, groups together the analyses of capacity, comparing the internal organizational factors and the 'external' institutional factors which condition performance and considering whether government capacity has been a critical constraint.