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India
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is an example where internal reform of the water utility has been the key success in improving delivery of water. The impending water crisis in the region forced the public water company to go back and ask itself fundamental questions about how it delivered water to people and it subsequently went through a governance reform process.
This process operated under a Tamil ‘koodam’ concept: a decision making space that treats everyone as equal. Key users of the water supply such as women and dalits (or ‘untouchables’) were involved in determining how best to supply water. Just three years into this reform and the utility is increasing access to water by ten per cent each year, the budget is stretching further, and tellingly, the common perception that more investment brings more access to water has been turned on its head, with investment levels falling by over 40 per cent. The reform has been so successful that the Tamil Nadu water utility is now sharing these lessons with other public utilities in India on a not-for-profit basis.
Kerala
Olavanna, in the Indian state of Kerala is an example of where a rural community has come together to improve water provision. The local community in Olavanna has initiated 60 drinking water schemes, over half supported by local government, that are providing reliable water to over half the local population, in contrast to only about 30 per cent in the 1990s.
As one researcher concludes, "Olavanna and similar models do suggest that the failing state-run models and privatisation can be replaced with people-owned models. The difference to be noted is that here the state is not actually shying away from providing drinking water, but it helps people own their drinking water projects and supports them through support to the village governments".
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