PhD Students / DAAD scholarship holders

Assessment of infrastructure repairs and maintenance of water utilites companies in Accra and Dar Salaam cities

Poster (opens in new tab)

The connection between modern cities and networked infrastructures have become „tightly-coupled“ in recnt years, due primarily, to adavanement in technology. However, it is a fact that all functional infrastructures are inherently prone to disruptions and failures as part of their existence. Also, due to complex interdependencies, failures of one system could results in massive cascading disruptions in other networks in cities. Despite these, infrastructures tend to become invisibel and taken-for-granted at least, when they work perfectly. They only become visible when they breakdown and can no longer perform the usual functions. It is only within this period of breakdown and restoration that repairs and maintenance becomes central and crtical. This research seek to deepen our understanding of how disregards for maintenance and repairs among water utilities companies could affect water services in Accra and Dar salaam cities. The research primarily seek to examine water infrastrucures‘ repairs policies of the utilities companies, how repairs/maintenance is being funded, the coping strategies of residents to disruptions, and the spaitial vulnerability of infrastructures in the face of growing complexities in the 21st century.