Public banks, public water: exploring the links in Europe
Thomas Marois, David A. McDonald
Abstract
Public banks have played an important role in financing public water and sanitation services in Europe for over a century, but these activities have been largely ignored in the academic literature. This special issue is an initial corrective to this research gap, providing conceptual insights and empirical information on eight countries and regions in Europe, covering a wide range of public banks working with public water operators. This introductory article provides background rationale for the research, outlines our methodologies, frames the theoretical potentials of public banks in the water sector, highlights key findings and points to future possible research directions.
Topics & Concepts
SanitationPublic sectorWater sectorWater industryBusinessPublic relationsPolitical scienceEmpirical researchConceptual frameworkEnvironmental resource managementPublic administrationEnvironmental planningRegional scienceEconomicsWater supplySociologyGeographyEngineeringSocial scienceLawEnvironmental engineeringEpistemologyPhilosophyWater resources management and optimizationLocal Government Finance and DecentralizationWater Governance and Infrastructure