Case Study - Kiskun-Viz, Hungary

1 KISKUN-VIZ, HUNGARY Context • High-income country • Aggregation covering urban and rural areas • High level of water supply and sanitation (WSS) performance Purpose Economic efficiency, performance, professionalization Scope WSS functions and services Scale • Administrative boundaries • Localities covered: 54 for water and 35 for wastewater • Population covered: 161,000 inhabitants for water and 141,000 for wastewater • Coverage: 100% for water; 87% for wastewater • Connections: 63,670 for water and 43,658 for wastewater • Network length: 1,377 km for water and 906 km for wastewater Process Top-down Governance • Merger • Public company • Decision making: municipalities and the Hungarian state are the utility’s shareholders • Asset transfer: assets remain the property of municipalities and are managed by the operator as part of the merger agreement • Liability: liabilities and debts from previous operators are taken on by aggregated utility • Staff transfer: all staff was transferred • Clear entry and exit rules Outcome Positive, with decreased operating expenses Findings Political resistance when choosing utility headquarters location and nominating CEOs; difficulty retaining skilled staff because of financial constraints; accountability mechanisms toward employees; harmonization of operating practices among aggregated entities on the basis of best practice; accountability toward customers (satisfaction survey); aggregation appears beneficial, especially for service quality and sustainability in small municipalities P ub lic D is cl os ur e A ut ho riz ed