Africa Water and Sanitation Systems Leadership Symposium – Regulation and Accountability

Regulators are the gyroscopes of the water supply and sanitation sector, balancing the interests of policymakers, service providers, and consumers, and ensuring continued momentum and progress towards sector targets. Systems transformation will not occur without well-defined regulatory frameworks, independent and empowered regulators, robust civil society, and the judicious application of accountability and regulatory mechanisms that respond to the needs of consumers and service providers alike.

While many regulatory and accountability systems are getting stronger, progress remains highly variable, and the symptoms of partial or ineffective regulatory and accountability systems remain ubiquitous.

The Africa Water and Sanitation Systems Leadership Symposium is being held in Kigali this week and provides a unique opportunity to showcase good practices from across Africa and inspire replication.

Under ESAWAS’s leadership, and in collaboration with a wide-ranging set of regulators, policymakers, service providers, development partners, and international and national associations and CSOs, we are excited to help deliver the symposium’s regulation and accountability dialogue.

Through three candid, problem-focused, and outcome-oriented sessions, the dialogue will address, head-on, the actions required to improve regulation and accountability across the continent and provide the opportunity to learn from several of Africa’s leading regulators:

• Session One – From Policy to Practice: Regulation and Accountability as Key Enablers within Sector

• Governance for Investment Readiness

• Session Two – From Compliance Enforcement to Performance Facilitation: Characteristics and Instruments of an Effective Regulator

• Session Three – Efficiency Reforms: Regulatory Influence on Service Provision Performance and Private Sector Involvement

Access the full background paper to the regulation and accountability dialogue here