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The PENSAARP 2030, the new Strategic Plan for Water Supply and Wastewater and Rainwater Management, is under public consultation. In this section, we invite you to take a guided tour of the plan and participate in this consultation. We describe in detail each of the twenty objectives, seeking to contribute to encourage the ongoing public discussion. See Objective D.2 here.
Objective of promoting societal appreciation
It is intended that the sector ensures societal appreciation by improving society’s perception of the value of the service, recognizing its essentiality for quality of life, public health, the economy and the environment, and, consequently, increasing the predisposition to adherence to the service and willingness to pay a fair price for it. It is essential to develop an understanding of the ‘true cost’ of water supply and wastewater and stormwater management in order to raise awareness in society.
Mechanisms for raising awareness, communication and behavior transformation, and consumer protection and participation must be used.
As a complement to public services, measures to fight poverty must be integrated, such as the improvement of domestic sanitary installations, in terms of water efficiency and the quality of the most degraded ones. It is also necessary to increase the number and quality of public sanitary installations in urban spaces in areas with higher population density, cleaning and modernizing cities.
This objective will be monitored through indicators of perception and appreciation by society of services and professionals in the sector, consumer protection, namely consumers at risk of poverty, and social participation.
Measures and incentives to achieve this objective
Four measures are directly associated with this objective, which we describe below based on the version of the plan under public discussion.
A first measure is the reinforcement of the societal appreciation of services and the transformation of behaviors (priority 3). It consists of reinforcing the value of water perceived by society, as an essential resource transversal to human activities, as well as the importance of its professionals. It implies the quantification of expenses and intangible benefits of water services, not directly perceptible by society. It also consists of strengthening awareness, communication and the transformation of society’s behavior, so that citizens improve their conduct, rationally use water, perceive the need to adhere to public services and show greater willingness to pay the fair price for these services.
The following are identified as recommended incentives: raising awareness about the value of water and water services with the involvement of opinion influencers and media figures; awareness actions about water services aimed at other professionals (eg journalists, diplomats, judges, tourism, etc.); awareness-raising actions on the control of autonomous solutions aimed at citizens, when they are the only viable solution; preparation of studies on the value of water, from the economic, environmental and social perspectives, including tangible and intangible costs; elaboration of communication instruments on the value of water and water services, for local use by management entities; elaboration of recommendations on budget reinforcement of management entities for communication, as a management tool; preparation of recommendations on publicizing the benefits to citizens of the construction of infrastructure on public roads; and actions to disseminate reference cases of awareness-raising actions on the value of water.
A second measure is strengthening consumer protection and participation (priority 3). It consists of strengthening consumer protection, although the legislation is already quite adequate, and citizen participation, where there is still a clear cultural deficit and, consequently, a high potential for improvement, facilitating communication mechanisms and relationships between management entities and users of services and enabling the creation and adequate training of associations and commissions of service users, which can play an important role if properly framed, trained and informed.
The following are identified as necessary incentives: amendment of the legislation on quality of service with the definition of targets and compensation to users for non-compliance; amendment of legislation on explicit national commitment to the fulfillment of human rights in access to water and sanitation; amendment of the legislation on the dematerialisation of the relationship between managing entities and users; and amendment of the legislation on surveys to assess the satisfaction of users of services provided by management entities. The following are identified as recommended incentives: training and qualification in water services for consumer dispute arbitration centers; training and capacity building in water services for consumer protection associations and user commissions; elaboration of studies on the creation of commissions for users of management entities’ services (“local voices for water”); and preparation of studies on the evaluation of the impact of water services on public health (epidemiology).
A third measure is the improvement of public sanitary facilities (priority 3). It consists of creating conditions for the provision of accessible, hygienic and safe public sanitary facilities in the main public spaces (for example, squares and main streets), enhancing and modernizing the urban environment and making it healthier and safer. It also includes the construction of public sanitary installations in places of precarious short-term stay (for example, for nomadic populations), desirably in all the county seats, in the spirit of compliance with human rights in water and sanitation and human dignity.
The following are identified as necessary incentives: amendment of the legislation on accessible, hygienic and safe public sanitary installations in the most frequented outdoor spaces; and alteration of the legislation on public sanitary installations in places of precarious short-term stay in the municipal capitals. The recommended incentives are: elaboration of recommendations on the construction of public sanitary facilities; actions to support the implementation of pilot projects to improve public sanitary facilities; and actions to support innovation on technological solutions for public sanitary installations by national industry.
A fourth measure is the improvement of home sanitation facilities for needy families (priority 3). It consists of creating conditions for improving domestic sanitary facilities for needy families, which are incomplete or degraded, so that users can take better advantage of available services, in the spirit of human rights in water and sanitation, and promoting human dignity. This improvement in home sanitary facilities is an opportunity to install more water-efficient systems and equipment.
It is identified as a necessary incentive the articulation between government areas for the creation of programs to support the improvement of degraded domestic sanitary installations of needy families. The recommended incentives are: preparation of awareness notebooks for decision-makers on improving domestic sanitary facilities for needy families; actions to support the implementation of pilot projects to improve domestic sanitary facilities for needy families; and actions to publicize reference cases of improvement of domestic sanitary installations for needy families.
Participation in the public consultation
If you have comments or suggestions for improving this objective, its measures and incentives, participate in the public consultation through the addresses:
https://www.consultalex.gov.pt/ConsultaPublica_Detail.aspx?Consulta_Id=239
Read the next text in this series, available very soon
PENSAARP 2030: How to promote transparency, accountability and ethics?
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The vision of Associação LIS-Water – Lisbon International Center for Water is to contribute to a better world through better water governance. It thus promotes more effective, efficient and resilient water supply and wastewater and rainwater management services, within the framework of sustainable development objectives.
These water services are essential for the well-being of citizens and for economic activities, with a clear impact on improving public health, environmental sustainability and mitigating risks, namely arising from climate change.. They generate benefits in terms of job creation, economic growth, increased social stability and reduced conflicts, contributing to a more developed, peaceful, equitable and healthy society.
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