II. FUNDAMENTACION TEORICA
6. METODOLOGIA PARA EL ANÁLISIS DE RESULTADOS
NYEWASCO: An example of a ‘success’ story35
Nyeri Water and Sewerage Company (NYEWASCO) is a shining example of how successful privatisation of water and sanitation services can be in Kenya’s local autho- rities. In 1982, the Municipal Council of Nyeri took over the provision of water services from the central government. Because of its inadequacy, a Water and Sewerage Department was created in 1995. This did not make things better, however, mainly because water revenues went to the municipal council treasury and were often diverted to non-water areas. As a result, burst pipes could not be repaired and water services could not be extended to match population growth. With support from GTZ, the Nyeri Water and Sewerage Com- pany was created as an independent company in 1997. With GTZ’s technical inputs and the willingness of the Municipal Council of Nyeri to free its grip on the water department,36 NYEWASCO started its operations the following year.
35
This section is based on Wambua (2004: 12-13); UN-HABITAT (2006: 80) and Owuor et al. (2006: 33- 35).
36
Under the agreement between the municipal council and NYEWASCO, relations between the two parties were regulated, the whole water infrastructure valued at more than 500 million Kenyan shillings was passed on to NYEWASCO, and it absorbed all staff from the municipal council’s water department.
Photo 1: Nyeri Water and Sewerage Company Offices
Photo: Sam Owuor
By 2003, even before the enforcement of the Water Act 2002, some of NYEWASCO’s accomplishments were:
• Being run on strict corporate lines with revenue from water ploughed back into im- proving water and sewerage provision.
• Increasing the number of registered connections with 26% between December 1999 and March 2003 as well as increasing the number of metered connections.
• Substantially improving the billing and revenue collection, i.e. the efficiency of revenue collection has risen to 98% (in 2006) from the previous 60% when the company took over the management of water services in the municipality.
• Customer satisfaction with the quality of the water and with the company’s customer care.
• Increasing the Kamakwa water treatment works production capacity by 50%.
• Reduced complaints about water turbidity.
• Prompt action to and repair of reported water pipe bursts and other breakages.
• Establishment of water kiosks in the low-income settlements of the municipality.
• Reducing water losses from 55% to about 40%.
However, according to Wambua (2004: 13), the company still “needs to develop an elaborate conservation plan for sustainable management of water resources”. That does not
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mean that the company is not pursuing environmentally-conscious undertaking. For in- stance, it changed its main service of water from Nairobi River – which was drying up because of farming activities upstream – to Itooni River, hence saving the river that flows all the way to the Kenyan capital.
NYEWASCO is a success story because of four main reasons:
1. The company has received a lot of support from the municipal council.
2. The company functions professionally and autonomously, without political interfer- ence.
3. The company recognises the need to equip its staff with the necessary skills to perform well. As such, the company has trained all the staff they inherited from the council.
4. The company recognises the needs of the population. They involve the community in their activities to provide them with a sense of ownership.
NYEWASCO has effectively demonstrated among others that:
• Team work and cooperation among civic leaders, chief officers, the private sector and the general public are cornerstones to sustainable service delivery with a human face.
• Good governance (i.e. transparency and accountability) is a key component to pro- poor service delivery.
• Improved water and sanitation services and predictable delivery system can be achieved in Kenyan local authorities.
• Social responsibility is important in any organisation.
• Pro-poor programmes are compatible with commercialisation of basic services.
• Improved communication does lead to sustained support from customers, suppliers and others.
NYAWASCO: A case of ‘exemplary’ performance of a small Water Service Provider37 Nyahururu Water and Sewerage Company (NYAWASCO) has not only emerged (in 2008) as the best performing Water Service Provider in the category of small Water Service Providers but has also emerged as the best overall company nationally.38 The company’s exemplary performance is summarised in the following quote:
“Nyahururu district hospital used to witness at least thirty cases of water borne cholera every week. Commuters passing through Nyahururu were always being reminded not to take tap water while in the town. That is now a thing of the past thanks to Nyahururu Water and Sewerage Company which has revolutionized the quality of services being received by the customers” (WASREB 2008: 39).
37
This section is quoted from WASREB (2008: 39-40).
38
According to the analysis, WASREB (ibid) attributes this exemplary performance to a number of factors, among them:
• Improvement in the quality of services being rendered to the customers.
• Hard work, discipline, full commitment, and proactive approach in achieving the objectives set by the company.
• Good corporate governance and principle of inclusivity.
• Increased coverage, pro-poor focus, longer hours of supply, and guaranteed quality of water through scheduled quality checks.
• Customer satisfaction through improved billing, communication and swift action to reported problems and complaints.
• Maintaining optimal staff ratios.
• Good will from the customers, the Board and other stakeholders due to their growing confidence on the company.
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