Widening access to water for slum residents in Indonesia

Access to water for poor residents in Jakarta, Indonesia, is limited. Among the challenges they face are the high prices demanded by water service providers, poor water quality, and limited access to water infrastructure. With support from IDRC, the global humanitarian agency Mercy Corps worked with residents, local government, researchers, NGOs, and the private sector to tackle these challenges.

The results from this IDRC-supported project, Focus Cities : Economic Incentives for Improving Water, Sanitation and Solid Waste Services in Jakarta (Indonesia) were published in 2010, in the book Water Resources and Development in Southeast Asia.  

The relevant chapter, Participatory Urban Water Supply in Jakarta Slum Area, presents a case study on community-based water supply. In the slum of Penjaringan, North Jakarta, researchers tested an alternative method of water supply management by seeking public and private support for community-based ownership, maintenance, and operation of the local water supply. The authors highlight the need to form partnerships between community, government, and private water providers to collectively achieve the water-related development targets for the urban poor. 

Watch an audio slideshow about this project, or find more results listed below.​