| dc.description.abstract | Introduction: There is an increasing need to ensure the sustainability of improved water supply in urban areas of Uganda and this can be enhanced through the revenue generated from consumers to support the service providers. However, the households’ willingness of households in urban area like Gulu City to pay for water services are affected by various factors that are unknown.
Objective: This was to determine the factors affecting willingness to pay for improved water services in Bardege-Layibi division, Gulu city, and urban areas of Uganda so as to inform sustainable and efficient water source governance. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among a random sample of 250 households in Bardege-Layibi division, Gulu city. A multi-stage cluster sampling strategy was used to select the participating households. Data were collected on background information, water source characteristics, water demand and use patterns, willingness to pay, community and service factors. The main outcome variable was willingness to pay which was dichotomised and associations with the predictor variables was measured using bivariate modified Poisson regression model using STATA 15.0 software. A 95% confidence interval and P value of < 0.05 was used to test the level of significance. Results: The study consisted of a sample size of 250 participants, with majority being male (61.2%). A significant proportion fell within the age range of 30-49 (74.4%). All participants in the research had access to improved water supply. The majority of the respondents (68.80%), expressed their willingness to pay for improved water services. Some of the factors that had significant influence on willingness were present of primary water source, perception on reliability (CPR=6.94, p=0.004, 95% C.I: 1.87-25.79), and water quality (CPR=0.8, p=0.000, 95% C.I: 0.70-0.84) , time taken for primary water source to fill 20 litres jerry-can (CPR=1.5, p=0.000, 95% C.I: 1.33-1.58) and duration of utilization of primary water source (CPR=1.3, p=0.001, 95% C.I: 1.12-1.62). Conclusion: This study revealed that a significant majority of respondents expressed their willingness to pay for improved water services and the willingness was affected by presence of a 12 primary water source, perception of reliability, water quality, time taken for primary water source to fill 20 ltres jerry-can, and duration of utilization of the primary water source were found to have a significant influence on their willingness to pay. Efforts should be made to ensure a close proximity of the primary water source to residential areas. Public awareness campaigns highlighting the benefits of improved water services and their impact on health and well-being can also be implemented to encourage greater participation and support for such initiatives. | en_US |
