The operations and effectiveness of public and private provision of solid waste collection services in Kampala
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Date
2012
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Habitat International
Abstract
This paper compares the operations and discusses the effectiveness of public and private sector provision
of solid waste collection in Kampala, Uganda. Household data suggest that the private sector is more
effective than the public sector. Private sector companies provide services like container provision and
providing timely and fixed collection time tables. Contrary to popular perception, fees charged by private
companies are moderate. Public sector clients are charged fees even when the service is supposed to be
free. Clients of private sector providers are more satisfied than those of public sector providers. It is
however, revealed that while public sector serve mainly the low incomes, the private sector serves
mainly the rich. In spite of these notable differences, clients of both public and private sector perceive the
problem of solid waste management (SWM) in Kampala to be very serious. The effectiveness of public
and private sector operations in solid waste collection in Kampala is hampered by corruption and lack of
transparency. Given the situation of open competition for clients involving both public and private sector
in Kampala, it is possible the public sector can operate effectively if they start commercial services
officially like their private sector counterparts. This calls for a formal public-private partnership where
the public and private sector can work together with the public sector dominating poor and marginalized
areas while the private sector concentrates on rich neighborhoods.
Description
Keywords
Solid waste collection, Privatization, Effectiveness, Households
Citation
Katusiimeh, M. W., Mol, A. P., & Burger, K. (2012). The operations and effectiveness of public and private provision of solid waste collection services in Kampala. Habitat International, 36(2), 247-252. doi:10.1016/j.habitatint.2011.10.002