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Water Demand And The Urban Poor: A Study Of The Factors Influencing Water Consumption Among Households In Cape Town, South Africa

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  • Ada Jansen
  • Carl‐erik Schulz

Abstract

Water demand management is a key focus area for most water managers and even more so in developing countries since improved access to water is important to the poor. Different policies have been introduced to ensure a water management system th at cares for the poor, among them the Increasing Block Tariff (IBT) structure. Studies demonstrate that it is very important to know the shape of the demand curve when deciding on the IBT structure. This paper adds to the understanding of the factors that influence water consumption. The focus is on how water demand patterns vary with the level of income among urban dwellers. The results support the hypothesis that pricing is an ineffective measure to manage water consumption among the poor, while it is relatively more effective for the richest group. Therefore, redistribution using water pricing policy will hardly work.

Suggested Citation

  • Ada Jansen & Carl‐erik Schulz, 2006. "Water Demand And The Urban Poor: A Study Of The Factors Influencing Water Consumption Among Households In Cape Town, South Africa," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 74(3), pages 593-609, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:sajeco:v:74:y:2006:i:3:p:593-609
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1813-6982.2006.00084.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Piet Rietveld & Jan Rouwendal & Bert Zwart, 1997. "Estimating Water Demand in Urban Indonesia: A Maximum Likelihood Approach to block Rate Pricing Data," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 97-072/3, Tinbergen Institute.
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    1. repec:ipg:wpaper:2014-484 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Gill, Tania & Punt, Cecilia, 2010. "The Potential Impact of Increased Irrigation Water Tariffs in South Africa," 2010 AAAE Third Conference/AEASA 48th Conference, September 19-23, 2010, Cape Town, South Africa 96425, African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE).
    3. Elisa Savelli & Maurizio Mazzoleni & Giuliano Baldassarre & Hannah Cloke & Maria Rusca, 2023. "Urban water crises driven by elites’ unsustainable consumption," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 6(8), pages 929-940, August.
    4. Henrique Monteiro, 2010. "Residential Water Demand in Portugal: checking for efficiency-based justifications for increasing block tariffs," Working Papers Series 1 ercwp0110, ISCTE-IUL, Business Research Unit (BRU-IUL).
    5. Dinusha Dharmaratna & Edwyna Harris, 2012. "Estimating Residential Water Demand Using the Stone-Geary Functional Form: The Case of Sri Lanka," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 26(8), pages 2283-2299, June.
    6. Kloos, Julia & Tsegai, Daniel W., 2009. "Preferences for domestic water services in the Middle Olifants sub-basin of South Africa," Discussion Papers 49970, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF).
    7. Thopil, George Alex & Pouris, Anastassios, 2016. "A 20 year forecast of water usage in electricity generation for South Africa amidst water scarce conditions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1106-1121.
    8. Yates, Julian S. & Harris, Leila M., 2018. "Hybrid regulatory landscapes: The human right to water, variegated neoliberal water governance, and policy transfer in Cape Town, South Africa, and Accra, Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 75-87.
    9. Murwirapachena, Genius & Dikgang, Johane, 2018. "An empirical examination of reducing status quo bias in heterogeneous populations: evidence from the South African water sector," MPRA Paper 91549, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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