Drawing upon the World Bank's experience in China, as well as the Bank's global knowledge, this report paints an attainable vision for the urban water sector in the year 2020. This vision entails the provision of safe and reliable drinking water for all, comprehensive stormwater drainage, and...

Municipal solid waste management continues to be a major challenge for local governments in both urban and rural areas across the world, and one of the key issues is their financial constraints. Recently an economic analysis was conducted in Eryuan, a poor county located in Yunnan Province of...

While polluted surface water is encountered across most of China, few economic valuation studies have been conducted on water quality changes. Limited information about the economic values associated with those potential water quality improvements or deteriorations is a disadvantage for making...

The sustainable development of ger areas in Ulaanbaatar (UB), the capital city of Mongolia, is one of the critical development issues facing the country. The transitions to a market economy and a series of severe winters (called zud) have resulted in the large-scale migration of low-income...

With a policy of free entry, individuals, firms, or community groups who wish to supply power, water, and sanitation services can do so with minimal legal restrictions. Free entry is the opposite of"exclusivity"or"legal monopoly". Free entry is allowed in most industries, but governments usually...