Times
Wed, 9 Sep 26
16:00 - 17:00
Water Economics and Politics Seminar Series
/ Water institutions and sector performance
Speaker: Assoc. Prof. and University Research Chair Dustin Garrick | University of Waterloo, Canada
Time: 16:00 South African Standard Time (SAST) | GMT +2
Topic: Informal water markets have spread in response to gaps in piped water and irrigation services. Despite expectations that informal water markets will be replaced by publicly regulated water supplies or evolve toward formal water markets, a wide variety of institutional arrangements have developed and persisted based on local conditions. This study draws on longitudinal studies of water vending (urban settings) and groundwater irrigation services (rural-urban) to understand this institutional diversity and examine the conditions under which informal water markets deliver on different, often conflicting, policy goals. The presentation focuses on (1) measurement approaches for tracking water transactions in informal or self-governed contexts and (2) evidence synthesis to understand variation in institutional arrangements across empirical studies. A multi-site observatory network for informal water markets illustrates potential for advancing theory and navigating trade-offs during policy reform.
About the speaker: Prof. Dustin Garrick is Associate Professor and University Research Chair in Water and Development Policy at the University of Waterloo, Canada and Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom. His research examines the political economy and governance of water markets with a focus on institutional arrangements shaping competition, cooperation, and conflict in the context of providing and allocating water. He uses multiple methods to understand the evolution of water markets and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams in Australia, the Western U.S., and, more recently, in East Africa and South Asia. This work has received support and recognition from research councils in Australia, Canada, the UK, and the European Commission, along with foundations and research institutes (Philomathia, Botin, Gordon, Lincoln Institute). Over the past decade, Dr Garrick has been working to support place-based partnerships across a network of water markets observatories, particularly through mentoring early-career researchers. He also serves as advisor and consultant for community groups, the World Bank, UN, OECD, and national governments. More on bluerangelabs.org.