WB water aid may dry up
WB water aid may dry up
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The World Bank may not disburse the third and last tranche of the
Water Resources Sector Adjustment Loan (Watsal), worth US$150
million, to Indonesia if the controversial water resources bill
fails to meet a 1999 commitment on water resource policy reform.
Guy Alaerts, the bank's senior water resources specialist,
said on Tuesday that the bank was confused about developments in
the water bill deliberation.
"We must discuss it with the government whether to continue
the programs (or not). If there are different thoughts with
regards the policy, the funding may not continue," said Alaerts.
The House of Representatives (DPR) has put the bill's
deliberation on hold, due to strong public reactions concerning
the privatization of the water sector.
The bill has also triggered debates on whether water was a
commodity or a basic human right.
According to Alaerts, the water resources bill was "absolutely
not in line with the loan agreement, the on-going projects nor
the grant agreement".
"Therefore, the investment would be useless because there may
not be interests or benefits," he said.
Confronted with a severe economic crisis, the government
agreed in 1999 to reform the country's legislation on water to
allow the privatization of the water sector, in exchange for $300
million in loans. The first and second tranches were disbursed in
June 1999 and 2001 respectively, totaling US$150 million.
Many analysts and non-governmental organizations have
expressed their opposition to the existing draft water resource
bill, as it considers water as an economic commodity, which they
say threatens people with uncertainty over access to safe and
affordable water.
The World Bank sponsored a similar program in Bolivia in 1999,
but the program has been at the root of frequent protests over
access to safe and affordable water.
Alaerts claimed that the bank and other donors had invested
some $1 billion for various projects in water resource management
reform in Indonesia, including Watsal.
"If the Indonesian government and the House do not want to
continue it, it would create problems not only to Indonesia, but
also to donors," he warned.
He said the World Bank and other donors had conducted an
initial discussion with the government about the issue.
Alaerts rejected allegations that the water resources
investments from the bank was a vehicle for multinational water
companies to enter the country.
"Some 95 percent of all funding from the World Bank has
nothing to do with private companies. We're not interested in
helping them ... no benefit," he said. "(The World Bank) only
hopes for more equitable management of water resources so people
would be assured access to water in the future."
Legislator Amri Husni Siregar of the Reform faction said the
House would not be hasty in deliberating the bill.
"We have no target. We are only concerned about making a
legislation that is good and is accepted by the public," he
asserted, adding that the House was scheduled to resume the
deliberation later this month.
Amri, who is also a member of the House working committee for
the bill's deliberation, said the House would accommodate public
scrutiny of the bill.
Simon L. Himawan, director of water resources and irrigation
with the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), said the
issue had become the government's concern.
"(If they stop the disbursement), Minister (of Finance)
Boediono will have a headache, as it will affect the state's
financial balance," he said. He suggested the bank to understand
that the deliberation was beyond the government's authority, as
it was in the hands of the House.