Service Delivery and State Legitimacy: Multi-Stakeholder Processes in Water and Sanitation in Ethiopia

This report presents the findings of a research conducted in Ethiopia by the „MSPs, Service Delivery and State Institutions‟ working group of the „Network for Peace, Security and Development‟.1 The research aimed at generating insight in: the nature of cooperation between multiple state and non-state actors for the improvement and delivery of basic services; and how such cooperation affect the legitimacy and effectiveness of the state institutions involved To achieve the above objectives the study was guided by the following research question: “how do multi-stakeholder processes (MSPs) for the improvement of service delivery affect the performance and governance of those services, and how does this affect the legitimacy of state institutions?” We have assessed two MSPs, which were established for water and sanitation and hygiene (WASH) service delivery. The study identified the various societal actors (state, civil society, donor, and private sector) engaged in the MSPs and analyzed the governance mechanisms they functioned in. It has also analyzed the achievements of the MSPs in improving WASH service delivery and their impact on the legitimacy of the state institutions involved. The study employed both primary and secondary data collection techniques. Secondary data were collected from reports and other publications while primary data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews from five categories of respondents: public and private MSP participants; users/beneficiaries; policy makers; donors/financers; non-MSP service providers; and key experts. The two case studies were conducted in the Achefer (case 1) and Fogera (case 2) districts (Woredas) of the Amhara National Regional State. The Achefer Woreda MSP was initiated by a local NGO – Organization for Relief and Development in Amhara (ORDA) – while the Fogera Woreda MSP was initiated, as part of a regional program, by an international donor agency - the Finland International Development Agency (FINNDA). The two MSPs shared similar objectives: improving WASH services through capacity building of local institutions and communities for planning, implementation and evaluation of WASH service development projects as well as management of service utilization. In addition to the above objectives, the MSP in Fogera Woreda aimed at addressing cost and technological problems to ensure community managed WASH service delivery. The MSPs studied indeed had effects on the legitimacy of the state institutions involved. These were attributed not only to MSPs‟ effect on service delivery (output), but also to the initiation and governance (input and throughput) of the MSPs. The local people in both case studies considered water service delivery primarily the responsibility of the state in general and of the woreda/district governments in particular. The MSP structures and processes at different (regional, local and grassroots) levels in general and the grassroots levels in particular created opportunities for citizens to directly participate and influence WASH service delivery decision making. Such processes increased community members‟ sense of belongingness to the local governments, which has a positive influence on the legitimacy of participating state institutions. The findings also indicated that over-publicity of the roles and contributions of dominant non-state MSP initiators had a counterproductive effect on the legitimacy of state institutions.