Mayors Expected to Nullify Privatization Contract in Huancayo, Peru

The municipality of Huancayo, Peru, will likely decide to nullify the privatization agreements that were reached under the previous government for the town. UUSC program partner the Water and Sanitation Workers of Peru (FENTAP), and the coalition organized to promote a public, sustainable model for water services in Huancayo, carried out a campaign during last year's national and local elections to place their model in the debates and impact any post election decisions.

Their hard work has payed dividends in Huancayo. FENTAP announced today that the newly elected officials will "correspond to the political, social, and technical consensus for a sustainable, depoliticized, and participatory" model for Huancayo's water services sector.

What are the next steps? FENTAP and the local coalition are preparing to propose a "public-public" partnership with a public water services utility from Argentina, with support from Corporate Observatory Europe/Transnational Institute. Huancayo's decision will add another barrier to the schedule of privatizations of the Peruvian national government under an Inter-American Development Bank-funded scheme.