Realizing the potential of public-private partnership projects in water

In 2001 the World Economic Forum started a series of 'initiatives' with the purpose of engaging business in tackling problems that concern business and its critics. The World Economic Forum's portfolio of active initiatives in 2006 included corporate citizenship, global health, global governance, greenhouse gas and water.
The World Economic Forum Water Initiative, a joint effort of WEF, Alcan and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, first started in 2003. The focus was on creating multistakeholder networks to facilitate the development of public-private water projects that would help meet the need of stakeholders. Much effort was spent in the initial stage, investigating the market for - and raising awareness about - the potential for innovative public-private partnerships in water. By 2005, India and South Africa were emerging as the two focus areas.
The projects disclosed in this brochure are the first fruits of this labour. It reveals the potential of multistakeholder networks and processes to develop and broker the right projects in an integrated and holistic manner that help bring economic and social development to water-stressed regions. Theory and constraints applied to water development projects are elaborated, as also key elements of the brokerage network process.