Determinants of privatized solid waste management service provision in Lagos

Abstract

The growing popularity of privatized solid waste management service in least developed countries warrants an exploration of factors that are likely to impact on its sustainability. This study takes integrated solid waste management approach by analyzing relevant issues on both market sides. We use a three step theme development sequence to analyze the data obtained on service providers through library research, observations and interviews. This was followed by an opinion survey on the demand side to elicit households' support for service improvement. Findings show that source-separation issues, government enforcement, market segmentation, financial issues and waste disposal issues are key factors influencing improved service provision. Meanwhile, on the demand side, we found that households are willing to support proposed regulatory improvement in service provision. Thus, we suggest industrial stakeholders to consider the aforementioned supply side issues in designing future service improvements that will take advantage of existing demand side feasibility.

Reducing Attribute Non-Attendance Risk in Choice Experiment: An application of Design Attribute Relative Importance Index for Waste Management Service Provision in Segmented Markets

“…This is important to explore, especially when the target population is stratified into sub-groups, where prices and other attributes of the service are usually not the same in sub-markets for similar but differentiated goods. Service provision was known to differ slightly across affluent neighborhoods and urban slum areas in prior interview responses (Adam et al, 2015). The key factor noted to be responsible for this was inadequate availability of accessible roads in urban-slum areas populated by the poor relative to the urban-affluent areas.…”

“…A top executive member of the Lagos state waste management authority (LAWMA) noted that LAWMA proposes to subsidise the effort of households to segregate their solid waste into designated recyclable categories. LAWMA will collect the separated recyclables, while the source-separator will be given a discount of 50% on the monthly bill (Adam et al, 2015). Due to this policy consideration, other potential monetary design-attributes in Table 1 were deemed policy-irrelevant, reducing the list from 23 to 17 attributes, including other non-monetary attributes.…”

“…The provision of solid waste management services slightly differs across affluent and poor neighborhoods (Adepitan, 2010). This discrepancy is not a direct consequence of government policy, but was due to inadequate infrastructure in urban slum areas, specifically accessible roads (Adam et al, 2015). Therefore, the population can be stratified into affluent neighborhoods with accessible roads, and urban slum areas with often inaccessible roads.…”

“…It has the highest population density in Nigeria and it was chosen because of its remarkably impressive reforms. Once tagged the dirtiest city in the world but now has the most organized solid waste management system in Nigeria with over 300 private sector companies operating in its solid waste management service sector (Adam et al, 2015;Olukanni & Nwafor, 2019).…”

Privatization of Solid Waste Management: Opportunities and Challenges

“…However, the private sector is poised to have some strength in resource mobilization and expansion of services concurring with: privatization in waste management is critical because private sectors have easy access to loans to purchase quality equipment minimizing operational costs and lost, they have more experiences and expertise; and they are free from state interference, can usher in new innovation, techniques to access finance, cuttingedge knowledge, managerial skills, entrepreneurial spirit combined with social responsibility, environmental awareness, local knowledge of the public sector and above all, they are profit oriented (Plummer, 2000) as cited in Is-haque (2013). Privatization pays dividends due to many factors such as source-separation issues, government enforcement, market segmentation, financial issues and waste disposal (Adam et al, 2014). Privatization benefits encompasses greater efficiency and enhance performance, competition, better management and accountability, faster responses, raising capital, fast decision making, higher services ethics, greater flexibility in purchasing land and facilities, greater access to experts and technology, partnerships, risk reduction because of transferring unpredictable costs or unreliable revenue (Basha, 2007).…”