Water Privatization in the Asia Pacific Region
Author: Jubilee South - Asia Pacific Movement on Debt and Development (JS-APMDD)
People’s access to their most precious resource – freshwater – is today at greater risk than ever before from aggressive attempts to profit massively from this life-giving resource. Privatization – the transfer of some or all of the assets or operations of public water systems into private hands – is unfolding at an alarmingly accelerated pace in the Asia Pacific region, led by such international financial institutions as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, working in collusion with client governments and
global water corporations.
The impacts and outcomes of handing over control, distribution and management of water resources to private entities already debunk many of the claims of privatization proponents. Continuously increasing costs of water and water services are Water Privatization in the Asia Pacific Region actually resulting in erosion of people’s access, especially for households who lack the capacity to pay. The premium placed on profitability has also led to deterioration of services in areas considered not viable enough. This has proven fatal in countries like the Philippines, with the outbreak of cholera and other diseases caused by dirty water. Consumers are held hostage by companies that have made their pledges of improving infrastructure contingent on the approval of tariff hikes. In several cases, even the continuous rise in water tariffs has not led to quality water services by private water firms. Marginalized and vulnerable groups, particularly women, are among those hit hardest because of the longer labor hours needed to source water that their families can afford.
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