Carina van Rooyen

Presentation to SANORD 2016 conference, 7-9 September in Uppsala, Sweden

NPM as a mechanism of accumulation by dispossession: The case of a public bulk water

provider in South Africa

Thank you SANORD for the conference attendance grant!

Rand Water established in 1903 from expropriation of private water companies operating on Witwatersrand

D Leith

(chief engineer 1903-1910

Image source: Rand Water

(Source: Rand Water 2014:82)

Water from Lesotho to Johannesburg

Abstraction

Purification

Distribution

Image source: Rand W

ater

+/- 400m

+/- 70 km

Pumping and distribution elevationsIm

age source: Rand Water

Supply area

Consumers 19 million

Area 18 000 sq km

Total pipelines3500 km

Employees3500

Image source: Rand Water

6

5

4

3

2

1

0Meg

alitr

es p

er d

ay

Bulk supplied in SA

Thousands

Phal

abor

wa

Wat

er

Wes

tern

Tvl

W

ater

Co.

Gold

Fie

lds

Wat

er

Port

El

izabe

th

Mag

alie

s W

ater

Mha

tuze

W

ater

Cape

To

wn

Um

geni

Wat

er

Purified water sold per day

Image source: Rand Water

Water demand & infrastructureSurplus capacityPeak day demand in 2005

Average annual daily demand

Peak day demand in 2014

Image source: Els 2006, adapted

“Because of the situation that we are in, we could be efficient, but we could be efficient in building a Rolls Royce to do the job of a

Mini” ~ executive manager at Rand Water

Image source: http://buyersguide.caranddriver.com/media/assets/submodel/7017.jpgIm

age source: http://carinsuranceav.com/data_im

ages/models/m

orris-mini/m

orris-mini-

11.jpg

(Source: RW 2014:38)

Chief executivePercy Sechemane

(since 2008)

Chief operating officer

Sipho Mosai(since 2009)

Chief financial officer

Matshidiso Nyembe (since

2009)Group

governance executive

Fikile Sithole (since 2008)

Group strategy executive

Vusi Kubheka (since 2012)

Strategic human resources executive

Wayida Mohamed (since 2009)

Group shared services executiveDr. Fawcett Ngoatje

(since 2008)

• Operations• Scientific Services• Strategic Asset

Management• Sector Growth and

Development • Funding• Group treasury• Medical scheme • Provident fund • Financial control • Financial planning

• Forensic audit• Internal audit• Legal services• Regulatory services • Strategic projects

• Risk advisory services• Corporate communications• IT & Knowledge management• Logistic services• Marketing & Stakeholder relations • Supply chain management• Strategic programmes • Corporate planning

• Corporate research & development • Financial & economic planning

• Compensation & information• Employee relations• Organisational Development & Design • Talent management• Rand Water Academy

Portfolio Integrating Committee

2000 – to be a viable & sustainable full water services provider

2006 – to be the industry leader & partner of choice in sustainable water services

2012 – to be a provider of sustainable, universally competitive water and sanitation solutions for AfricaImage source: http://www.digitalboardwalk.com/wp-content/images/about/vision_mission.jpg

Rand Water values (2014)Caring

Equity

IntegritySpirit of

partnership

Excellence

ServicesXSubsidiary Subsidiary Request to become a subsidiary

Sector growth & development division

19951996

19971998

19992000

20012002

20032004

20052006

20072008

20092010

20112012

20132014

R0

R1,000

R2,000

R3,000

R4,000

R5,000

R6,000

R7,000

R8,000

R9,000

R10,000

Revenue (million)Surplus (million)Potable water sales (Ml/d)

Key performance indicators of RW since 1995

Shifts in public management / governancePublic

administration

New public management

New public service

1980s-2000s

2000s-

-1980s Structure & organisational efficiencyStatist & bureaucratic – command & control approach

Use market models & values: Efficiency & effectivenessCompetitive & minimalist state

Use citizenship & democracyPlural & pluralist

Rand Water

Periods of public service reform in water sector

1850s-1930s 1930s-1970s From 1980s After 2000Early municipalisation

Nationalisation Privatisation / neo-Keynesianism

Remunicipalisation & renationalisation

(Content source: McDonald 2015)

Intensification of corporatisation

Rand Water a privatised public?Organisational structure Efficiency

Customer orientation Business orientationPricing & profits

Expansion or stretching into other activities

We’re here to serve!make a profit

Image source:

https://rachaelperkins.files.wordpress.com

/2013/10/privatization-2.jpg

Image source: https://www.royalholloway.ac.uk/CachedImage.axd?ImageName=%2Faboutus%2Fnewsandevents%2Fevents%2Feventsimages%2Fapplesandoranges.jpg&ImageWidth=400&ImageHeight=400

Public-public partnerships (PUPs)

“It is…generally accepted that in order for a utility to run efficiency, it needs to privatise. Rand Water has proven that this is not the case. There is a role for private sector but we

don't believe that it lies in improving efficiency. Utilities should work on increasing their own efficiencies and

profitability prior to considering privatisation so as to raise their value to investors. …There is no reason why a public

sector entity cannot run on business principles and be efficient – this is the message we plan to take throughout the

continent and we have our own successful track record to back up what we say. Rand Water wants to assist utilities get to this point so that what is on offer to the private sector has

value.” (Myeza of RWS)

Image source: http://www.freakingnews.com/pictures/116000/Cat-Penguins--116358.jpg

At the moment we are heading straight for the iceberg. And if we don’t re-plot that course, we are

going to hit the iceberg; there’s no doubt in my mind ~ senior manager

at Rand Water

Image source: http://www.ssmaritime.com/Titanic-Iceberg.jpg

Image source: http://4liberty.eu/w

p-content/uploads/2014/03/privatisation.jpg

Public / Private

Publicness beyond NPM

EquityCooperation

Social justice

Inclusive

Solidarity

Public accountabilityDemocracy Citizenship

EfficiencySustainability

Politics is not just about “expressing indignation or denouncing the powerful? What if it is, instead, about getting what you want? Then we progressives must ask: what do we

want? This is a quite different question (and a far more difficult question) than: what are we

against?” (Ferguson 2009:167)

They hang the man and flog the woman That steal the goose from off the common, But let the greater villain loseThat steals the common from the goose. The law demands that we atone When we take things we do not own, But leaves the lord and ladies fine Who take things that are yours and mine. (English nursery rhyme c.1764)

References Bryson JM, Crosby BC & Bloomberg L 2014 Public value governance: Moving beyond traditional public administration and the New Public Management. Public Administration Review 74(4): 445-456

Ferguson J 2009 The uses of neoliberalism. Antipode 41(s1): 167

McDonald DA & Ruiters G 2012 Introduction: In search of alternatives to privatisation. In McDonald DA & Ruiters G (eds) Alternatives to privatisation: Public options for essential services in the Global South. New York: Routledge

Robinson M 2015 From old public administration to the new public service: Implications for public sector reform in developing countries. Singapore: UNDP Global Centre for Public Service Excellence

Carina van RooyenAnthropology & Development

StudiesUniversity of Johannesburg

cvanrooyen@uj.ac.za | @carinavr

Thanks to SANORD for conference attendance grant!