Preferences for Domestic Water Services in the Middle Olifants Sub-Basin of South Africa

Using household survey data, this study investigates preferences for domestic water services in the Middle Olifants sub-basin of South Africa. Water is a relatively scarce resource in South Africa that is distributed unevenly both geographically and seasonally as well as sociopolitically. For a water management addressing the policy objectives of efficiency in use, equity in access and benefits and long-term sustainability, economic valuation of the different water uses is required. In order to detect households' preferences, a choice experiment of the various water services was conducted. Results suggested the presence of preference heterogeneity and therefore, a latent class model was applied, dividing households into homogeneous groups according to their preferences. Four distinct groups of households could be identified which differ significantly in terms of their socio-economic characteristics, their attitudes toward pricing of water and their satisfaction with current water service levels. Willingness to pay (WTP) estimates of different water service characteristics in all groups indicate that households are willing to pay higher prices for a better and more reliable water services provision. But the amount households are willing to pay differs among the groups. This information is helpful for policy-makers to enable the design of water services in the Middle Olifants according to preferences of local households. Besides, WTP estimation can provide a basis for setting water tariffs

Economic Analysis of Water Supply Cost Structure in the Middle Olifants Sub-Basin of South Africa

Using data gathered from the National Treasury of South Africa, we examine the structure of water supply costs and tariffs of Water Service Authorities (WSAs) in the Middle Olifants sub-basin of South Africa. Using the translog cost function method, the marginal cost of water supply and economies of scale are estimated. Comparison of tariffs and marginal costs show that the estimated marginal cost is higher than the actual tariff paid by consumers. This implies that WSAs in the Middle Olifants are not charging enough to recover the costs of the water services. Thus, among other things, pricing of water at its marginal cost would partly assist in solving the cost recovery problem. Raised tariffs would in turn contribute to improved efficiency of water use. As evidenced by estimation results of returns to scale (greater than one), merger of WSAs would be economically advantageous. Hence, reversing the process of transferring water services’ authority to ‘local’ municipality level and thus up-scaling WSAs into the ‘district’ municipality level is an important policy option for improving water services efficiency in the Middle Olifants sub-basin of South Africa

District-Level Spatial Analysis of Migration Flows in Ghana: Determinants and Implications for Policy

The present study investigates the determinants of inter-district migration flows over the 1995-2000 period in Ghana. A combination of socio-economic, natural and spatial ‘district-level’ attributes are considered as potential variables explaining the direction of migration flows. In addition to the ‘net’ migration model, ‘in’ and ‘out’ migration models are also employed within the context of the gravity model. Results in the three models consistently show that people move out of districts with less employment and choose districts with high employment rate as destinations. While shorter distance to roads encourages out-migration, districts with better water access seem to attract migrants. Generally, people move out of predominantly agrarian districts to relatively more urbanized districts

Industrial Water Demand Analysis in the Middle Olifants Sub-Basin of South Africa: The Case of Mining

This paper seeks to determine water demand of the mining sector in the Middle Olifants sub-basin of South Africa. Despite the growing economic importance of mining in the area, only little is known about its water demand and the role of water in the mines´ extraction process. By means of econometric estimation water price elasticities as well as substitution possibilities between water and other inputs are derived to analyze the response of mines to changes in water tariffs. Using primary data, a translog cost function is estimated for five mines operating in the area. Cost share equations of each input are specified and estimated using Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) method. The mean cost share of water for all five mines, with around 1%, is relatively small, reflecting the low water tariff and results show industrial water demand to be inelastic. Nevertheless, with water price elasticity values ranging from -0.77 to -0.95 for the five mines, there is a potential to influence water use patterns through higher tariffs. As mines are water intensive industries, possible water savings owing to raised water tariffs should not be neglected. Water intake is found to be a substitute for labor and capital for most of the mines, implying that capital investments in water saving technologies might be an alternative means to reduce water intake of the mining sector

Environmental risk, resilience and migration: implications for natural resource management and agriculture

This letter probes the causal links between migration, remittances and resilience to environmental change. Three case studies have been chosen, Western Mexico, the Central Plateau of Burkina Faso and Eastern India, where satellite imagery shows recent regeneration of vegetative cover and where there is evidence of high rates of migration. The findings are analysed through a framework that draws on concepts of ecological anthropology, new economics of labour theories and livelihood analyses of migration drivers and impacts

The Impacts of Piped Water on Water Quality, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health in Rural Households of North-Western Bangladesh - A Quasi-Experimental Analysis

We investigated the impacts of piped water on water quality, sanitation, hygiene and health outcomes in marginalized rural households of north-western Bangladesh using a quasi-experimental analysis. A government organization – the Barindra Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) – established a piped water network to provide these rural households with improved water as they have poor access to potable water. Using propensity score matching, the study compares a treatment and a control group of households to identify gains in water-sanitation, hygiene and health outcomes. We found that the BMDA piped water infrastructure had a positive impact on access to improved water and significantly reduced the distance traveled for and time spent on collecting drinking water. However, we found no improvement in the drinking water quality, which was measured by the extent of fecal contamination (E. coli count per 100 ml of water) at the point of use. The hygiene status of food utensils also did not show any improvement; food utensils were tested positive for E. coli in both the control and treatment group. Although access to BMDA piped water in the premises involves cost, it didn’t improve hygiene behavior: handwashing with soap after defecation and before feeding children. The treated households own larger water containers which implies that the intervention has had a clear impact on the quantity of water used for household purposes. However, we did not find evidence of health benefits, such as decreased diarrhea incidence of in under-five children, improved child anthropometrics stunting, underweight and wasting of children due to piped water use