Exploring capacity building needs for effective public-private partnerships in Ethiopia’s water service sector

Achieving universal access to clean water and sanitation remains a persistent challenge for low-income countries like Ethiopia. Despite notable progress, nearly half of rural households in Ethiopia still lack basic water services, in part due to inefficiencies in the dominant government-led, community-based management model, which is constrained by limited financing, weak supply chains, and inadequate operation and maintenance capacity. In response, public–private partnerships (PPPs) are gaining attention as a means to introduce private sector technical expertise and finance into the water sector. However, PPPs remain nascent in Ethiopia’s water services, and little is known about stakeholders’ capacity to plan and implement them effectively. This study assesses the capacity of key actors and identifies critical gaps for effective PPPs in Ethiopia’s water sector. In-depth interviews were conducted with 74 purposively selected stakeholders from federal to woreda-level government offices, private operators, service providers, financial institutions, and non-governmental organizations between October and November 2024. Six capacity areas were examined: PPP knowledge and experience, institutional frameworks and governance, project management, financial–economic analysis, legal/contractual knowledge, and stakeholder engagement and communication. Capacity areas were ranked using the Friedman test, and stakeholder groups were prioritized using Kruskal–Wallis mean ranks, with lower-ranked groups identified as priorities for intervention. The analysis revealed substantial capacity gaps across sectors and administrative levels, with sub-national actors—who are primarily responsible for water service delivery—exhibiting the most acute deficiencies. Service providers and private operators emerged as priority stakeholders, while legal/contractual knowledge and financial–economic analysis were identified as the most urgent areas for intervention. The study further highlights barriers and proposes tailored mechanisms to strengthen stakeholder capacity for water sector PPPs in Ethiopia.