Infrastructure for Poor People Public Policy for Private Provision

by Brook, Penelope J.; Irwin, Timothy C.

• ISBN13: 9780821353424
• ISBN10: 082135342X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-03-05
• Publisher: World Bank Publications

Summary

During the last two decades many governments have allowed private companies to offer infrastructure services which were previously provided only by state-owned businesses. In some cases they have privatized state-owned business and in others, they have permitted private firms to invest in and operate those businesses under lease contracts or long-term concessions. In still other instances, private firms have been allowed to compete alongside former government monopolists.'Infrastructure for Poor People' examines the data on infrastructure and the poor in developing countries, and discusses how policies, centered on private provision, can address their needs. It focuses on the design of government policy for the provision of infrastructure services by private firms, highlighting the rules determining which firms can sell infrastructure services, the prices they can charge, the quality of service they must offer, and any subsidies provided by the government.

Table of Contents

Foreword	v
Acknowledgments	vii
Contributors	viii
1. Private Infrastructure and the Poor: Increasing Access	1	(20)
Timothy Irwin and Penelope Brook
2. Universal Service: Empirical Evidence on the Provision of Infrastructure Services to Rural and Poor Urban Consumers	21	(56)
George R. G. Clarke and Scott J. Wallsten
3. Infrastructure Coverage and the Poor: A Global Perspective	77	(48)
Kristin Komives, Dale Whittington, and Xun Wu
4. Measuring the Impact of Energy Interventions on the Poor-An Illustration from Guatemala	125	(54)
Vivien Foster and Jean-Philippe Tré
5. Impact of Market Structure on Service Options for the Poor	179	(30)
David Ehrhardt
6. Regulating Infrastructure for the Poor: Perspectives on Regulatory System Design	209	(24)
Warrick Smith
7. Regulation of the Quality of Infrastructure Services in Developing Countries	233	(44)
Bill Baker and Sophie Trénaolet
8. Lifeline or Means-Testing? Electric Utility Subsidies in Honduras	277
Quentin Wodon, Mohamed Ihsan Ajwad, and Corinne Siaens