Water Privatization Saves Lives

Khoi Tran

Private Water Saves Lives

Water is an extremely essential element we absolutely need in order to survive, and it is recognized as a human right. But now, in the world, there are still many people without access to clean water. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one in six people worldwide, 894 million, don't have access to clean and safe water sources. Especially for people in poor countries, the lack of access to clean water is the reason for disease, hunger and poverty. So, helping all people access clean water is an important issue in the current times. But should the government manage water or should water management be privatized? This is a hot topic which is being debated in the world. In the article “Private Water Saves Lives,” originally published by the Financial Times on August 25, 2005, Fredrik Segerfeldt argues that privatization of water distribution should be increased with investment from private business. He argues that water privatization can save lives in developing countries. According to Fredrik Segerfeldt, the most important way to decrease death and disease in poor countries is to help people to connect to water mains. He believes that privatization can do a better job than government agencies in getting people to connect to water mains. He confirms that water privatization is already saving lives in several countries such as Chile and Cambodia. Although Segerfeldt’s argument sounds logical and well informed, there are gaps in his reasoning, and he lacks solid evidence to support his points

In the introduction, to get the attention of the reader, Fredrik Segerfeldt begins his article with a hot statistic and gives his opinion about the water management. “Worldwide, 1.1billion people, mainly in poor countries, do not have access to clean, safe water…However, there is no shortage of water,…Instead, bad policies are the main problem” (294). He makes the ethical argument that poverty, disease and early death are due to the shortage of water caused by bad policies. The reader can understand his purpose for writing is to seek the support of the wider community for privatization of water management and distribution, and get the attention of governments, so they will change laws and policies that favor privatization. It is an effective introduction because he makes his position clear and appeals to the reader’s sense of ethics.

Before he launches in to the criticisms against privatization, he explains the situation in the world that exists presently between the public sector and private sector concerning water. This is very logical because it helps the reader understand how water is managed in the world, and then he tackles the arguments. He uses the statistics to show the performance of government in water distribution: