Willingness-to-Pay and Design of Water Supply and Sanitation Projects: A Case Study

Abstract

Assistance of the Asian Development Bank in the water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector is predicted to increase. Improving demand assessments in project preparation is an identified need to enhance quality-at-entry. Using a case study, this paper demonstrates the usefulness of willingness-to-pay (WTP) studies in designing WSS projects. The case study was conducted to facilitate the design of public–private partnership for WSS in two service areas in Sri Lanka. The paper shows how to test the validity of WTP estimates and to use WTP data in generating useful supplementary information. It then illustrates the use of conjoint analysis to further understand demand. Finally, the paper shows how the findings can be used to assess the overall viability of the WSS project.