Abstract
Multi-stakeholder partnerships emerged from the 2002 Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) as a new vehicle for progressing toward the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by aligning the interests of businesses, governments and civil society to leverage the impact of their interventions. The water and sanitation sector boasts the largest number of such partnerships, including the demand-driven capacity-building partnership Partners for Water and Sanitation (PAWS), a product of the WSSD and a premier UK partnership for sustainable development. Through its partnership network, PAWS has access to the entire UK water industry, which they assign to capacity-building projects in Africa on a demand-driven basis. Though the supply of partners is generally strong, the demand for their assistance is variable. This paper examines the efficacy of demand-driven capacity building partnerships at achieving the water and sanitation MDGs, presenting a case study of the PAWS partnership and using it as a framework for discussion of the supply–demand dynamics that influence the scope, scale and ultimate impact of such partnerships.
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Notes
In 2008–2009, PAWS received £373,000, of which it allocated 27% (£97 K) to South Africa, 21% (£79 K) to Ethiopia, 20% (£75 K) to Nigeria, 16% (£61 K) to management and governance, 6% (£23 K) to fundraising, 6% to communications (£24 K) and 4% (£14 K) to Tanzania. Funds that are allocated to specific countries are for in-country staff salaries and related expenses and also for the flights and accommodations of UK partners.
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Acknowledgments
This article grew out of research conducted for a course titled “Public–Private Partnerships for Sustainable Development” taught by Dr. Lyuba Zarsky at the Monterey Institute of International Studies. Amer Barghouth provided extraordinary assistance during the initial stages of research that contributed significantly to this article. Our many thanks to both Dr. Zarsky and Mr. Barghouth as well as the PAWS staff who facilitated this research, particularly Ms. Clare Twelvetrees.
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Wertz, B.A., Odekova, A. & Seaman, M. Building capacity with demand-driven partnerships: a case study of Partners for Water and Sanitation. Environ Dev Sustain 13, 19–33 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-010-9245-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-010-9245-9