By Maude Barlow and Tony ClarkePolaris Institute The impacts of
World Bank and IMF structural adjustment programs on countries
in the Global South have been well-documented in the areas of
health and education, food security and jobs. However, less is
known about the impacts of the World Bank's latest obsession --
the privatization of water services. In country after country in
recent years, the World Bank has been quietly imposing a for-
profit system of water delivery, leaving millions of people
without access to water. The Bank is taking advantage of the
"Washington Consensus" model of development now adopted by its
donor countries and promoting the interests of a handful of
transnational water corporations. Instead of using its massive
funds to promote expertise in the public sector, thereby
acknowledging that water is a human right and an essential
public service, the Bank is forcing many countries to commodify
their water resources and put them on sale to the highest
bidder. There are ten major corporate