Serving all urban consumers : a marketing approach to water services in low and middle-income countries. Book 3. PREPP : utility consultation with the urban poor

This book shows how a water utility or similar provider can establish a dialogue with urban poor consumers to gain quality information about the services they receive and require. This is achieved through the use of a new approach called PREPP, a consumer consultation process developed primarily for this purpose.
PREPP is the acronym for Participation-Ranking-Experience-Perception-Partnership. The approach was developed and jointly piloted by social scientists and engineers who work for utilities. PREPP helps utility staff to learn about urban poor consumers in a way that assists the actual development and marketing of utility services to poor communities and households. It provides : 1) the experience of being a low-income consumer in a urban setting; 2) consumers’ perceptions of existing and future water and sanitation services; and 3) preferences for different services, payment and management options, including an indication of willingness to pay. This information can be used to assist a utility to determine which service level (including its management and payment option) is appropriate for which situation. This consultative approach to determining appropriate options is important if the chosen level is going to be offered at a price the consumer is willing to pay and the utility feels is financially viable.
The underpinning principle is the value of participation and partnership between utilities, communities and NGOs, engineers, social scientists, and community development workers and residents. The focus is on water supply but the techniques can be adapted, for example to reach agreement about technical options for on-plot sanitation.