Jordan: Private Plants, Public Utilities

Abstract

Jordan is one of the most water-scarce countries in the world. Water tariffs are kept low for political reasons, and water utilities are subsidized through foreign grants and in many other ways, such as direct payment of electricity bills for utilities by the state. One may not expect that “water privatization” would work in such an environment. Yet three public-private partnerships have been undertaken in this country: A management contract for the capital Amman; the financing and construction of the country’s largest wastewater treatment plant, serving both Amman and the neighboring city of Zarqa; and a large pipeline to supply the capital area with water.