Bridging the gap? An analysis of Public-Private Partnerships as an instrument to establish sustainable models of Faecal Sludge Management in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Abstract

People are rapidly filling cities across Africa that are unequipped to provide sufficient infrastructure, especially in the water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector. In the last few decades public-private partnerships (PPPs) have been promoted as a means to bridge this gap in infrastructure and service provision, but the literature is mixed on their efficacy. This thesis analysed PPPs as an instrument to establish small-scale faecal sludge management (FSM), a promising alternative to traditional sewered sanitation in complex urban environments. By building a framework for analysis based on a thorough literature review of critical success factors (CSFs) of PPPs in developing regions and in the WSS sector, this thesis was able to rate the readiness of Tanzania, and Dar es Salaam in particular, for their ability to adopt PPPs as an instrument to scale-up FSM. The findings showed a low readiness in Tanzania and Dar es Salaam for the adoption of PPPs. However, the private sector certainly has a role to play in providing sanitation services, of which they are already a part of, formally or not. A further gap analysis of three FSM private service providers identified key areas that can be improved, and a new partnership structure was proposed: Open Partnerships (OPs). These partnerships are community-led, flexible, less complex and open to all actors across the sanitation service chain in order to meet the growing need for adequate and safely-managed sanitation in quickly growing cities like Dar es Salaam.