Quantitative studies of water and sanitation utilities: a literature survey

Berg, Sanford V and Marques, Rui Cunha (2010): Quantitative studies of water and sanitation utilities: a literature survey. Forthcoming in: Water Policy

Abstract

This paper performs a literature update of quantitative studies of water and sanitation services (WSS). There are 190 studies which use cost or production functions to evaluate the performance of WSS utilities. The studies examine (1) the scale, scope or density economies of utilities in a particular country or region, (2) the influence of ownership on efficiency, (3) the existence and power of incentives associated with different governance systems (including external regulation), and (4) performance assessment (benchmarking). In addition, this paper presents some patterns regarding quantitative methods adopted over time and major trends in results.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: benchmarking; water and sanitation utilities; literature survey
• Subjects: L - Industrial Organization > L5 - Regulation and Industrial Policy > L51 - Economics of Regulation; L - Industrial Organization > L9 - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities > L95 - Gas Utilities ; Pipelines ; Water Utilities

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