The paper reviews the available literature on financing water and sanitation services, arguing that existing sources of investment – private water companies, private banks and official development finance – are simply not happening at the scale or pace required and are unlikely to do so in the near future.
The paper reviews the available literature on financing water and sanitation services, arguing that existing sources of investment – private water companies, private banks and official development finance – are simply not happening at the scale or pace required and are unlikely to do so in the near future. It assesses the potential for public banks to fill the financing gap, providing a brief history of public banking practices in the water sector. It also reviews the potential benefits of public banks in WSS financing, discusses the significance of the emergence of a new type of ‘public’ water operator, and considers the challenges these entities raise for public banks as citizens demand better accountability, participation, transparency, equity and sustainability. It closes up with a brief discussion of the need for future research into public banks as they relate to public water and sanitation.
