Water poverty and private investment in the water and sanitation sector

Private sector participation in the provision of water and sanitation has been a source of debate among water resources specialists and managers. While acknowledging the limitations of using one measurement to assess the benefit of private investment to the host nation, this paper looks at the impact of private investment on a widely-used water index that measures the population's welfare with regard to water and sanitation. The results of this study suggest that increasing the amount of private investment in the water sector increases accessibility and use of water and sanitation, but has no impact on the environment, the availability of the resource, or socioeconomic outcomes as measured by income, education, and child mortality. © 2005, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.