For the Love of Water - Essay Example

?"For the Love of Water (FLOW)." "A on Water" School Water being the most essential element of life is sadly being turned into a business item. People believe that as water comes from heaven then it should be free and all should have access to it. Sadly this is not the case on the ground. Major bodies and political institutes have gained control over the water distribution channels of the world and are making a lot of money at the expense of the poor persons. Water has now turned into an expensive commodity that can only be afforded by the well off while the rest have to do with spring water, or even dirty ditch water. Positive and negative externalities There are positive and negative externalities as far as water supply is concerned. The positive externalities are; the suppliers of the water are making millions as the commodity is in demand since we cannot do without water. It is the big corporations that are gaining from this business. These corporations are headed by persons who are believed to be associated with the World Bank. So as the World Bank imposes regulations on countries concerning the privatization of water supply then these corporations cash in. Privatization Privatization being the transfer of the ownership or business title to the private sector has turned the water supply system into a mess. Initially as the governments would supply water through their own ministries, there was sanity in the industry. As time went by, pressures have been exerted especially on the developing countries to privatize the water supply systems. Initially, the private sectors made the people believe that they were out to help them have water supply but this was not the case. It is common sense that as these companies supply water, they are in business and would want to make an extra coin for their investors. Privatization was meant to equip the cities with portable water and sewerage which did happen but only to those people who could afford the change. A lot of people who earn very little couldn’t afford the change and thus have to do with well water or borehole water where available. In other places in the world, the private sector connected water then charged for the water supply or consumption that people use. When these people are not able to pay for the water, it is cut off. These people have now turned rebellious and are reconnecting the pipes themselves to get the water. Some do this in the night. Advantages of privatization. Privatization though considered a bad omen by the people especially of the developing countries has its own advantages though not many. It has created employment as these corporations set up firms in these countries to supply water. These firms also contract persons to do the piping and sewerage construction, thereby creating money making avenues for the people on the ground. With the coming of the pipe water, it is believed that the rate of people getting water borne diseases was reduced as these water supplying corporations cleaned and disinfected the water. According to FLOW (2013) bad and infected water kills more than even AIDS and other diseases. Privatization was also a God sent blessing to the water bottling companies as the rate at which people are taking bottled water is very high and it created a booming business. To the people that were able to pay, sewerage and piped water is a blessing as compared to fetching water at a river or borehole. Disadvantages of privatization With these advantages came many disadvantages. People are excluded from portable water in cities. They don’t have water nor the money to buy the basic commodity. The kind of wages that these people get cannot allow them to have all the water that they would require to live healthy lives. They have to make do with very little water and do all they need to with this. What they can do away with like bathing daily, and cleaning their clothes, they don’t do on a daily basis but just when it is really necessary. The private water suppliers have neglected them. For these suppliers it is just business as usual. He have a saying that one pays for what they consume. It is sad that it is actually very expensive for the third world citizen to pay for water than it if for the rich. These corporations came to the people and made them believe that they would solve the water crisis but that was not the case. They were out just to make another dollar. These multinational corporations are truly not in the business of helping the needy and poor people. It is very expensive to feed livestock Recommendations I recommend there be instituted local authorities with the local people being the major stake holders. These authorities then can sit and decide a customized solution for their specific society to solve their water and sewerage issues. This would go a long way to solve the water problem. I also recommend that the World Bank stop imposing sanctions and regulations on how water is to be distributed in the third world countries as they are independent, in fact if it cares so much, the World Bank should give funds to these countries without restrictions. There is lack of access to water as the corporations that are supposed to supply the water are charging what the major populations can’t afford for this piped water. And in other places the people have been neglected by these corporations as they are deemed not able to make profits for these corporations. People should have universal access to water. This is because it is actually a fact that the world is made up of 70% water and 30% solid. If the right channels are used, and the right water supply methods, there can be affordable water for all as it is available. Pipes and taps are both a good and bad idea. If done well and by non-profit making organizations then it can be good as far as the cost implications on the people are concerned. As long as it remains a business, there is no way a major corporation will afford to supply piped water to needy people that make less than a dollar a day and expect to make a profit out of the business. These pipes serve well to reduce the distance that the people travel to get the water. Yet, there are places where people have taps but no water comes out of them for many days (FLOW, 2013). The number of firms innovating in water supply is very low because it is run by what we would call cartels (FLOW, 2013). The people who own these major water supplying firms are the same people making the policies that govern the water supply. I contribute to the solution of water shortage by making sure not to misuse the wate that I use and also by sensitizing upon the communities that water is becoming a scarce commodity that needs to be used well and carefully. Reference For the love of water(FLOW) 2013 Read More