Aguaconsult Joins RORA

The importance of robust regulation and good governance is widely recognised. This is reflected by the Global Call to Action as well as several recently developed global or pan-African guidance materials. It is also evident in the continued progress occurring at the country-level on regulation, including:

• The establishment of dedicated regulatory authorities.

• Enabling service delivery professionalisation by reorganising the sector for commercial viability and supporting private sector participation.

• The expansion of regulatory activities to cover a broader mixture of service providers, services and demographic settings.

To further support this critical trend, Aguaconsult is pleased to formally join core partners Water & Sanitation for Urban Populations, the World Health Organization, and ESAWAS in the Rolling Out Regulation in Africa (RORA) initiative as a service delivery partner.

RORA adopts a demand-led approach, working only with governments that express a genuine interest in improving regulation. The Initiative takes as its inspiration the principles set out in the WHO Roadmap for Advancing Sanitation Regulation, which can be adapted to include water supply and applied to inform progress monitoring, develop implementation plans and focus resources for technical assistance. RORA will include a range of activities to support locally-anchored reforms that respond to country-specific contexts, with a particular focus on low-income areas and populations. These activities include:

• Regulatory impact assessments and strategy formulation. 

• Supporting the establishment of dedicated regulatory institutions where they do not yet exist and there is clear political will.

• Clarifying mandates and regulatory responsibilities for often neglected services such as rural water and onsite sanitation.

• Helping governments to develop and apply accountability and regulatory mechanisms such as licensing and contracting regimes, data systems, standards, and incentives that balance the interests of service providers and consumers.

For more information on RORA, please reach out to Bill or Analia.