2008 - 2009 - Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2012 - 2013

PART 1: THE WORLD OF WATER 2008-2009
Manila Water (2007) Sustainability Report 2006
Manila Water (2008) Annual Report 2007
Bolivia: Low cost approaches in La Paz and political priorities
In 1997 a 30 year water and sewerage concession for La Paz & El Alto, serving 1.48million
people was awarded to Aguas de Illimani (AISA). The consortium was led by Suez of France
(55%), along with Bolivian and Argentinean investors.
AISA's contract in La Paz was specifically designed to pre-empt affordability concerns. By using
labour provided by customers, the cost of connecting poor areas has been reduced. While 45%
of the population of La Paz live below the poverty line, the proportion in El Alto is 73%. For low
income families in El Alto, the connection charge was up to USD315 against the Government
standard connection fee of USD455. Connection costs in El Alto are repaid by the community
over five years via an interest free loan, allied with micro credit for internal plumbing. Community
involvement (e.g. choice in siting pipes) was paramount, along with gaining community support
from the outset. Similar projects only took place where at least 60% of the community supports
them. Families not connected to the network pay an average of USD4.78 per month for water
(against an average of USD1.55per month for connected families) at USD2.38 / m 3 . This data
was collected in District 7 during December 2004. During 2004, 373,000 people were connected
to drinking water supplies.
Coverage and people served by new connections, 1997-2004
1997 2004 Connected New connections
La Paz 92% 100% 174,000 30,000
El Alto 82% 98% 199,000 57,000
Suez (2005a)
By the end of 2005 a total of 97,031 families (608,000) people had been connected to the water
network (Suez 2006). Service delivery and affordability under the concession can be judged by
contrasting AISA’s performance in 2003 with that of SEMAPA, the utility serving Cochabamba,
the city which cancelled a water concession in 2000.
2003 performance AISA SEMAPA
Drinking water coverage 98.85% 68.72%
Average water availability 23.96 h/day 14.40 h/day
Tariff (USD) USD0.22 / M 3 USD0.27 / M 3
Tariff (BOL) BOL 13.32 / M 3 BOL 24.50 / M 3
Source: Superintendencia de Saneamiento Basico (SISAB) cited in Suez (2005a)
Rates are determined by SISAB, the Government regulator. In La Paz and El Alto (and some
other cities including Santa Cruz), they are calculated in USD while in Cochabamba, they are
calculated in BOL. Using bilateral funds provided by the Swiss Government and USD0.4million
from AISA, additional domestic connections have been provided to areas outside El Alto’s
service area.
The current status of the contract is unclear because of protests that AISA is not connecting
enough people outside the contract’s service area (an estimated 200,000 people have moved to
these areas in recent years from the countryside) and changes in the tariffs due to the
depreciation of the Boliviano against the US Dollar.
In January 2006, Bolivia’s President Morales created a water ministry charged with
renationalising water operations. The La Paz and El Alto concession was targeted, as the sole
major concession in Bolivia. Abel Mamani, the water minister, previously ran Fejuve, the anti
private sector pressure group operating in La Paz and El Alto.
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Pinsent Masons Water Yearbook 2008-2009