Video on remunicipalisation: putting water back into public hands

Cities worldwide are experiencing the failures of water privatisation. Unequal access, broken promises, environmental hazards and scandalous profit margins are prompting municipalities to take back control of this essential service. This new book from Corporate Europe Observatory, Transnational Institute and the Municipal Services Project examines this growing trend for water ‘remunicipalisation’.

Case studies analyse the transition from private to public water provision in Paris, Dar es Salaam, Buenos Aires and Hamilton, and look at a national-level experiment in Malaysia.

A motion design documentary shows examples of cities reversing water privatization to regain public control. This video explores water 'remunicipalisation' in Buenos Aires and Paris, looking at the challenges and benefits of reclaiming public water. It calls on citizens worldwide to mobilize around this option. Remunicipalisation Works!

This video was commissioned by MSP, CEO and TNI.

Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO), the Municipal Services Project (MSP) and the Transnational Institute (TNI) are launching the groundbreaking study Remunicipalisation: Putting Water Back in Public Hands on Thursday, March 15 in Marseille, France.

Be it out of sheer ignorance or because it is serving narrow corporate interests, or both, the European Commission is pushing for water supply privatisation in Europe precisely when the business model that this policy wants to support is dying.

A new website - www.remunicipalisation.org - went live June 12 to highlight the growing trend to return failing privately managed water services to public management. Just this month, the Mayor of Paris announced that the city would be returning services to public management from 2009. France - arguably the heartland of privatised water services - is at the forefront of the remunicipalisation trend that is also manifesting itself in parts of South America, North America and Africa.