The rise and fall of private sector participation in Dar es Salaam’s water supply. From 1997 to 2003, the Government of Tanzania leased Dar es Salaam’s water infrastructure to to City Water Services Ltd. This report reviews the origins, performance and demise of this short-lived experiment.
From 1997 to 2003, the Government of Tanzania was involved in protracted negotiations with international water companies and donor agencies that culminated in an agreement to lease
Dar es Salaam’s water supply infrastructure from the state-owned Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority (DAWASA) to City Water Services Ltd. (CWS), a joint venture between
British, German and Tanzanian companies. The lease contract was part of the $164.6 million
Dar es Salaam Water and Sanitation Services Project (DWSSP), financed mainly with loans from the World Bank (WB), the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank.