System Reliability and Water Service Decentralization: Investigating Household Preferences in Nicaragua

William Vásquez () and Dina Franceschi ()

Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), 2013, vol. 27, issue 14, 4913-4926

Abstract: Concern continues to grow over unreliable water access at the household level in many developing countries. A contingent valuation survey was designed to elicit willingness-to-pay for safe and reliable drinking water in León, Nicaragua. In addition, split-sample treatments were used to investigate preferences for two forms of service governance: the current, centralized water supplier and a decentralized service implemented at the municipal level. Results show that households are willing to pay a substantial increase in their water bills for reliable water supply. Findings also indicate that households hold greater confidence in the current, centralized provider rather than a localized service based on several characteristics such as overall service, awareness of water issues, interest in solving water problems, capacity, accountability, and potential investment. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Keywords: System reliability; Decentralization; Drinking water; Contingent valuation; Willingness to pay; Nicaragua (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:waterr:v:27:y:2013:i:14:p:4913-4926

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DOI: 10.1007/s11269-013-0447-4

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