Can regional cooperation deliver private investments for the water and sanitation sector in the Carribean?

Attracting private investment to the water and sanitation sector presupposes clear policy guidelines, a supportive legal framework and good regulatory governance. A multiple-case study strategy informed by interviews and documents was used to examine the operating environment in the water and sanitation sectors of Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago. The aim of the paper is to identify opportunities for regional cooperation to improve the operating environment for private investment in the Caribbean water and sanitation sector. The paper finds that sharing knowledge and experiences, overcoming capacity/capability constraints, providing centralised services in areas such as regulation, harmonising regional standards, and building alliances to strengthen bargaining power are practical ways of improving the operating environment for private investment in the Caribbean water and sanitation sector.