Water Privatization Essay
Water is just as important as air, it is a basic need for life, ever since the beginning when one is searching for life, water is the first thing to look for, without water there is no life. Everyone deserves to have access to water.
Yet 1/8th of the worlds population doesn't have access to safe and clean drinking water. Most of these people are from the developing parts of the world, this translates into 884 million people without safe and clean drinking water, thats equivalent to the size of north and south America. Over the course of the year 1.5 million people die each year from water related causes. Poor countries have been told that private companies, including some of the worlds largest corporations such as Suez, Veolia, Saur, and
Thames would bring finance and efficiency gains, to improve public water systems, But over time, these water privatisation schemes have failed.
The first reason why is that many cooperations have consistently increased water bills after taking control of their public water system, knocking out poor consumers out of the market entirely, leaving them with no access to water at all because they can’t afford it even when it is physically accessible.
This is happening in many countries such as Guinea, Senegal, Bolivia, the
Philippines and many more. The problem is, is that water is treated like a marketable commodity rather than a basic human need and a natural resource. Therefore making it unaffordable to the poor, leaving them without access to safe clean water because the tariffs are too high, allowing people with more money to have water.
This is evident in Bolivia which one of South Americas most poorest countries, it is seen as one of the worlds most notorious and controversial water privatisation programs. In the 1990s the World Bank guidance forced
Bolivia into privatising their water in some of Bolivia's poorest regions such as Cochabamba and El alto. ‘Bechtel’ which is Americas biggest construction
and
Yet 1/8th of the worlds population doesn't have access to safe and clean drinking water. Most of these people are from the developing parts of the world, this translates into 884 million people without safe and clean drinking water, thats equivalent to the size of north and south America. Over the course of the year 1.5 million people die each year from water related causes. Poor countries have been told that private companies, including some of the worlds largest corporations such as Suez, Veolia, Saur, and
Thames would bring finance and efficiency gains, to improve public water systems, But over time, these water privatisation schemes have failed.
The first reason why is that many cooperations have consistently increased water bills after taking control of their public water system, knocking out poor consumers out of the market entirely, leaving them with no access to water at all because they can’t afford it even when it is physically accessible.
This is happening in many countries such as Guinea, Senegal, Bolivia, the
Philippines and many more. The problem is, is that water is treated like a marketable commodity rather than a basic human need and a natural resource. Therefore making it unaffordable to the poor, leaving them without access to safe clean water because the tariffs are too high, allowing people with more money to have water.
This is evident in Bolivia which one of South Americas most poorest countries, it is seen as one of the worlds most notorious and controversial water privatisation programs. In the 1990s the World Bank guidance forced
Bolivia into privatising their water in some of Bolivia's poorest regions such as Cochabamba and El alto. ‘Bechtel’ which is Americas biggest construction
and
Bibliography: James, D. (n.d.). Advantages & Disadvantages of Privatization . eHow.com. Retrieved November 5, 2012, from http://www.ehow.com/info_8166130_advantagesdisadvantages-privatization.html The Issue of Water Privatization . (2009, May 27). YouTube. Retrieved November 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRagFvwH0Vo Water Privatization in the Developing World . (2010, October 31). YouTube. Retrieved November 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?