Smart water management: can it improve accessibility and affordability of water for everyone?

By improving the operational capacity of utilities, smart water systems may enable utilities to improve access to water services and their affordability. Use of smart technologies is increasing in leading-edge utilities for this purpose. However, water access may be problematic where utilities perform poorly or when utilities do not choose to extend universal service, and smart tools can address both problems with increased effectiveness of operations and improved customer interfaces. In either setting, effective governance is required, and security and privacy issues will be of concern. To explore the feasibility of smart tools, demonstration projects will be needed with political and financial support. An example of using smart tools to facilitate service extension in collective housing is presented. While this is one way to use smart tools, other pathways are available, especially their use to improve overall effectiveness of utility operations.