Legal status
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CDWUU - Community Drinking Water Users’ Union MWU - Municipal Water Enterprise ...
Across the country, rural systems, without a formal service provider, are usually serviced by a village headman who raises funds to fix breakouts. This is where the activity ends.
Legalization allows the water service provider to operate in accordance with the law, protect the rights of customers, ensure transparency and financial accountability, as well as open access to financing and improve management efficiency. Therefore, it is very important for water service providers to be an enterprise in order to achieve sustainable operation.
Average price
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The profitability of a water service provider is an indicator that shows how much money the provider receives for providing water services and how much he earns after covering all costs....
This is very important to ensure a reliable water supply. When the supplier makes enough profit, he can invest in repairing and maintaining the system so that it remains in good condition and runs smoothly without sourcing and hiring external resources. This helps maintain the quality of water services and the assurance that water will be available at all times.
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The level of organizational management of the water service provider is assessed based on four different management questions, which include:...
Legal status and governing bodies: This question concerns the legal and administrative structure of the organization. It evaluates how the water service provider is officially registered and complies with legal requirements. Legalization ensures transparency, accountability and legitimacy of the activities of the organization, and monitors and supervises the activities of the service provider to ensure compliance with rules and regulations.
Assessing the level of management responsiveness: This issue is related to management processes and organizational structure and personnel. It evaluates how effectively the organization manages its resources, makes strategic decisions and exercises operational control, which is based on the availability of both administrative staff and the availability of engineering staff necessary to maintain the water supply system. Includes such aspects as planning, control and monitoring, resources, etc.
Women's Participation in Management: This refers to the level of women's involvement in decision making and management of an organization. The assessment includes an analysis of the presence of women in leadership positions and their participation in strategic planning and decision-making. Women's participation in governance promotes diversity of views and experiences, and promotes equity and social justice.
Tariff regulation and accountability to the community: The water service provider is usually required to be transparent and open to the community. This may include the publication of information on tariffs, financial statements, investment plans and the quality of services provided. Tariff regulation - defines the procedures and criteria for setting tariffs for water supply services. They can analyze the cost of providing services, evaluate investments, operating costs and standard profits in order to determine reasonable rates that will ensure the sustainability of the service provider and at the same time protect the interests of consumers. The assessment is made according to criteria such as the existence of a tariff scale, the existence of payment mechanisms, maintaining accounting and reporting to the community.
Assessing the level of tariff regulation and transparency through accountability allows assessing the degree of openness, fairness and responsibility of the water supply service provider
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Proper operation and maintenance (O&M) of a water supply system helps prevent accidents, ensure the reliability of the system, improve the quality of services provided, and ensure the safety of drinking water for consumers. These are important aspects of the water service provider's operations to maintain a continuous supply of clean and safe water in the community....
Parameters assessed include: Availability (of staff or contractors) to support the provision of water services; Implementation of preventive and corrective maintenance; Availability of resources (building materials, tools, equipment, consumables) for O&M, etc. The dependence of these resources on the number of distribution networks and water supply systems that are serviced by this service provider, the number of installed water meters and their functionality, etc. are assessed.
If water supply services are provided by informal providers, the score for this component will be 0.
Operation includes the performance of operational tasks related to ensuring the uninterrupted supply of water, monitoring water quality and ensuring the correct functioning of the system. This includes regular checks, monitoring of parameters and adjustment of equipment, as well as prompt response to emerging problems or accidents.
Maintenance refers to the planned and preventive measures aimed at maintaining and updating the infrastructure of the water supply system. Includes regular maintenance and inspection of equipment, replacement of worn parts, as well as repair work. Maintenance plays an important role in ensuring the reliability and longevity of the water supply system.
O&M regulation - evaluates the existence and application of O&M regulations. The O&M regulation of a water supply system may include the following aspects:
General O&M principles
Equipment Maintenance Rules
Water quality monitoring
Inspections and checks of networks and pipelines
Infrastructure upgrade
Education and training of personnel, etc.
Particular attention is paid to the tasks associated with water disinfection, as this is an important aspect of ensuring the safety and quality of drinking water. The water service provider must have appropriate water disinfection procedures and equipment, such as chlorination or other disinfection methods, and ensure that they are properly functioning and maintained.
Equipment with water meters – the number of water meters, their functionality and the possibility of maintenance by technical specialists are assessed.
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Economic management and financial performance are measured using a reduced number of key performance indicators that are commonly used to assess the performance of water utilities. Economic management is the average of six variables:...
1. The Billing Efficiency Ratio is a metric that reflects the efficiency of collecting funds for water use in relation to the amount of water produced. This indicator measures how efficiently the water service provider collects fees for the services it provides.
2. The effectiveness of charges is a measure of the average revenue from charges in one month in relation to the average amount of water charges collected in a month. The assessment of the collection efficiency ratio helps the water service provider to determine the effectiveness of its collection system and take actions to improve the collection process, including increasing consumer awareness, improving the billing system.
3. Profitability is the percentage of total income in relation to the total number of expenses. Profitability assessment is an important tool for a water service provider, as it allows you to evaluate the effectiveness of the company's financial performance. Profitability reflects the ability of the service provider to generate sufficient revenue to cover all expenses, including the cost of maintaining and updating infrastructure, paying staff, purchasing necessary equipment and materials, and paying taxes and other mandatory payments.
A cost-benefit assessment helps you identify areas where you need to improve cost management, reduce costs, and optimize the use of resources. This may include finding efficient ways of doing things, using new technologies to improve process efficiency, reducing water wastage, improving energy efficiency, and budgeting smartly.
The service provider may also seek to increase overall revenue by developing innovative approaches to service delivery, attracting new customers, developing additional services, or improving existing services. It is important to find a balance between improving profitability and ensuring the availability and quality of services for the community in order to meet the needs of consumers and ensure the sustainable operation of the service provider in the long term.
4. Liquidity. Liquidity assessment helps the water service provider understand how ready it is to meet its financial obligations on time and without problems. This allows him to understand how much money he has on hand and how easily he can use that money to pay his bills and expenses. This assessment helps the supplier take steps to improve its financial flexibility and ensure the sustainability of its operations.
When liquidity is strong, the supplier may use available cash to invest in infrastructure improvements, upgrades to the water supply system, or expansion of the services provided.
With moderate liquidity, the supplier can analyze and optimize its financial operations, for example, reduce costs, improve inventory and receivables management, and develop strategies to increase revenues.
With low and very low liquidity, the supplier needs to take urgent measures to improve the financial situation. This may include seeking additional funding, revisiting payment terms with suppliers, and reviewing budgetary spending. Long-term measures are also possible, such as developing a financial plan, reorganizing the debt load and improving the efficiency of operations.
5. Solvency. A solvency assessment helps the water service provider understand how well it can pay its bills and meet its financial obligations on time. This helps him determine how much money he has to pay expenses and how easily he can get additional funding if needed. The solvency assessment allows the supplier to take steps to improve its ability to pay bills and ensure the financial stability of its operations.
6. Coverage of debt obligations. This is an indicator that allows you to assess how the water service provider is able to pay off its debts. The higher the coverage ratio, the better, because it means that the supplier can pay its debts on time without financial hardship. However, if the coverage ratio is low or very low, this may indicate that the supplier is having difficulty paying its debt obligations and may require additional efforts or resources to resolve financial problems.
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Environmental protection is an important aspect of assessing the performance of a water service provider. This component assesses the ability of the service provider to promote hygiene in the community and protect the environment around the water supply system. In case water supply services are provided by informal providers, the score for this component would be 0 Includes the following aspects:...
Promoting Environmental Improvement and Hygiene Practices: Measures how actively the water service provider promotes and provides education on hygiene practices in the community. This includes promoting the proper use of water, sanitation and hygiene, training in proper handwashing, drinking water handling and other hygiene measures. As well as the disposal of excrement.
- Environmentally sound disposal of excreta: The water service provider may have programs and initiatives to ensure safe and environmentally sustainable disposal of excreta. This may include:
- Supporting the use of wastewater collection and treatment systems that effectively remove and treat wastewater, including excreta.
- Encourage the use of modern technologies and methods for the treatment and processing of excreta, such as biogas plants, composting or anaerobic immersion.
- Preventive Hygiene Measures: The Service Provider may also implement measures to raise public awareness of the importance of preventive hygiene and the prevention of diseases associated with improper handling of excreta. This may include:
- Educational campaigns and programs aimed at raising awareness of the importance of regular handwashing, use of sanitary utensils and other hygiene measures.
- Dissemination of information on safe and hygienic methods of disposal of excreta to prevent environmental pollution and the spread of infections.
These measures are aimed at maintaining the health and well-being of the population, as well as promoting sustainable development and the preservation of the environment.
Promotion of environmental protection in the vicinity of the system: assesses the extent to which the water service provider takes measures to protect the environment in the area of its operation. This includes measures to reduce water pollution, proper disposal of waste and measures to preserve the ecosystem:
- A call for a waiver and a ban on the use of pesticides
- Safe water disposal, prohibition of wastewater discharge near the source of water supply
- Forest protection measures
- Collection and removal of municipal solid waste
Preventive environmental protection measures in the vicinity of the system include measures such as:
- Revision and/or improvement of legal or administrative measures to protect the water protection zones of water sources
- Establishment of water protection zones near the source of water supply
- Protection of flora and fauna in close proximity to the water supply
- Inspection of fences around water sources and making repairs to the fence if necessary
- Checking pollution and cleaning water protection areas
- Checking and replacing elements of the water intake device
- Prevention of cutting down green spaces around the source of water supply and forest protection measures
- Soil layer protection (stabilization of slopes, installation of natural barriers, stone dams, etc.)
- Review and implementation of fire and environmental preventive measures
An assessment of these aspects helps determine whether the water service provider is actively promoting community hygiene and protecting the environment. This is important to ensure the health and well-being of users and the conservation of natural resources in the area of the water supply system.
Service Providers
Siasar ID | Name | Administrative Division | Score |
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