Water

Comparative Analysis of Water Sector Reforms
Tracking Progress in Asia and the Pacific
Assessing Water Sector Policies and Reforms

What makes reform happen? Why does reform take place in some countries but not in others? What works and does not work under what circumstances? What facilitates or hinders the reform process? ADB tried to answer these questions through a study of water sector reforms in Asia and the Pacific. Find out what the results are.

CONTENT Objectives Countries Included in the Study Findings: Region-wide Adoption of ADB Water Policy Actions Findings: Success Factors for Reform Measures Technical Details of the Study References

• Get the status of the water sector and sector reforms in a selected ADB developing member countries (DMCs)
• Map out the scope and methodology of the comparative analysis of water sector reforms
• Assess linkages and recommend related initiatives to facilitate the implementation of ADB's water policy

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Seventeen (17) ADB developing member countries of ADB were included in the study. Read the country briefs.

These countries cover the full range of conditions and progress in tackling water sector reforms.

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The interim review of ADB's water policy implementation identified forty policy actions from the seven principal elements of the water policy. These policy actions were used as indicators to assess the progress of adopting water sector reforms in the countries studied.

The study found that:

• The greatest progress has been made with "foundational elements" - sector reviews, policy development, and the like
• The weakest progress has been made in the area of service delivery
• Weak progress often appears to be associated with the transfer of responsibility from lead government agencies to other stakeholders
• Adopting policies is much easier than implementing them
• Individual countries may differ widely from the region-wide trends

Read the details of this analysis.

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The study adopted the premise that the success of reform measures is influenced by nine factors. Read the findings for each factor.

	Political Environment Includes elements of the political environment that provide incentives or impediments to change, e.g. devolution, privatization, etc.
	Activities of External Support Agencies (ESAs) ESA activities serve to disseminate to many countries a substantially common approach to analysis of issues.
	Engagement of "Elite" Decision Makers "Elite" refers to the ministers and senior civil servants who provide political and administrative leadership. They determine whether or not a particular reform initiative will proceed.
	Socio-Economic Environment Includes elements of the socio-economic environment that provide incentives or impediments to change, e.g. water stress, incidence of water related diseases, education of water beneficiaries.
	Crisis Events Pertains to particular crisis events that prompt change, e.g. flood, or activity by another riparian state in a shared river basin that is perceived as a threat.
	Performance/Output Gaps Particular circumstances and needs require different types of interventions. A careful analysis of performance/outputs gaps is necessary to ensure that appropriate reform interventions are adopted.
	Policy Reform Approaches Includes the level of intervention, use of information to measure performance and monitor progress, the means of engaging all stakeholders, change in organizational structure, etc.
	Stage and Trajectory of Reform Refers to the stage that the reform and change have reached. This factor is important because few countries are at the same stage, and planned reforms are rarely brought to a conclusion before new modifications are introduced.
	Results of Reform and Change Includes operational, process or system capacity, realization of the vision, outcomes desired by the community and the like.

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• Full Report [PDF]
• Forty ADB Water Policy Actions
• Questionnaire [PDF]
• Summary Notes: Dialogue on Water Sector Reform
• Bibiography [PDF]