Infrastructure for Poor People: Public Policy for Private Provision

Penelope J. Brook and Timothy Irwin ()

No 15159 in World Bank Publications - Books from The World Bank Group

Abstract: The chapters in this book examine the data on infrastructure and the poor in developing countries and consider how policies centered on private provision can address their needs. Many of the chapters focus on the extent to which the poor have access to infrastructure services of reasonable quality, for example, to water that is safe to drink, to a reliable source of electricity, and to a nearby telephone. Access to such services is, of course, not the only infrastructure issue that matters to the poor; the poor who already have access to modern services care, for instance, about the price and reliability of those services. However, in most developing countries access is the key issue. In these countries most of the poor have no access to standard infrastructure services provided by utilities. Instead they often pay high prices for lower-quality substitutes: they might buy water by the bucket from a private vendor and use candles instead of electricity for lighting. They would rarely make a telephone call. The lack of ready access to good basic infrastructure services can directly reduce the well-being of the poor.

Keywords: Banks and Banking Reform Environmental Economics and Policies Health Economics and Finance Public Sector Economics and Finance Urban Development-Municipal Financial Management Health; Nutrition and Population (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2003
ISBN: 0-8213-5342-X
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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