Rural Water Supply Limited
25 Dominica Dr, Kingston, Agency
The Role of the Rural Water Supply Limited
With consistently reduced allocations from Capital A Budget to the Ministry of Water & Housing for water supply projects since 1998 / 1999, it had been felt that CECL could not survive due to the reduced project portfolio of the Ministry. However, Rural Water Supply Limited repositioned itself to efficiently execute works for other agencies such as Jamaica Social Investment Fund, National Housing Trust, National Irrigation Commission and Housing Agency of Jamaica as well as selected Private Sector companies such as the major players in the bauxite industry in order to achieve some amount of budgetary independence.
The Water Sector Policy has as its twin objectives the expansion of access to water supply by all Jamaicans by 2015, as well as improved efficiency of the NWC and increased cost recovery. The objective of universal access pre-supposes huge investments in the sector, a substantial amount of which must be provided by the government for rural projects, which are largely not financially viable. The objective of reorienting the NWC to make it more efficient, commercially driven and customer friendly, as well as the emphasis on full cost recovery, dictates that in the new dispensation, NWC ought not to be saddled with rural projects which undermine its bottom line.
The policy, therefore, makes a clear distinction between the NWC providing water in an efficient and profitable manner and the provision of water for social and developmental purposes. The two objectives are somewhat contradictory and call for an institutional arrangement that recognizes and separates these two functions
With consistently reduced allocations from Capital A Budget to the Ministry of Water & Housing for water supply projects since 1998 / 1999, it had been felt that CECL could not survive due to the reduced project portfolio of the Ministry. However, Rural Water Supply Limited repositioned itself to efficiently execute works for other agencies such as Jamaica Social Investment Fund, National Housing Trust, National Irrigation Commission and Housing Agency of Jamaica as well as selected Private Sector companies such as the major players in the bauxite industry in order to achieve some amount of budgetary independence.
The Water Sector Policy has as its twin objectives the expansion of access to water supply by all Jamaicans by 2015, as well as improved efficiency of the NWC and increased cost recovery. The objective of universal access pre-supposes huge investments in the sector, a substantial amount of which must be provided by the government for rural projects, which are largely not financially viable. The objective of reorienting the NWC to make it more efficient, commercially driven and customer friendly, as well as the emphasis on full cost recovery, dictates that in the new dispensation, NWC ought not to be saddled with rural projects which undermine its bottom line.
The policy, therefore, makes a clear distinction between the NWC providing water in an efficient and profitable manner and the provision of water for social and developmental purposes. The two objectives are somewhat contradictory and call for an institutional arrangement that recognizes and separates these two functions
