State Legitimacy and MSP Service Delivery Experiences from Burundi

This report presents the outcomes of the research conducted in Burundi by the „MSPs, Service Delivery and State Institutions‟ working group of the „Network for Peace, Security and Development‟ initiated by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Research was carried out with the objective to generate insight in:
-the cooperation between multiple state and non-state actors for the improvement and delivery of basic services (focused on utilities) in so-called „fragile‟ states;
-and how these arrangements may contribute to the legitimacy and effectiveness of the state institutions involved in such cooperation processes

We have assessed the functioning of „multi-stakeholder processes‟ – cooperation mechanisms between multiple actors from various societal domains (state; civil society; private sector) – for water and sanitation (WASH) service delivery and analyzed their impact on the legitimacy of the state institutions involved. Five categories of informants provided us with data: beneficiaries; MSP actors; donors; non-MSP experts; and national policy-makers. In Burundi, we have studied two cases, one in Mwumba (Ngozi) and one in Buhinyuza (Muyinga).

Peace Security and Development Network 2011

This publication is an outcome of the in 2008 established ‘Network for Peace, Security and Development’. The Network aims to support and encourage the sharing of expertise and cooperation between the different Dutch sectors and organisations involved in fragile states. The PSD Network is an initiative under the Schokland Agreements in 2007.