Privatization of water corporations in the local governments in Israel

The establishment of the water corporations in Israel, which are financial companies that took the place of the Water Departments in the local governments, constitutes a turning point in the relation between the local governments and the citizens. If in the past the local government saw itself as a nonprofit organization that served the community, the reform in the water industry converted the community activity of the municipal sector into a totally capitalist business operation. In the first years of the establishment of the State of Israel, it was clear that the State had to provide water to its residents as a source of livelihood and a basis for agricultural development and the conquest of the wilderness, but today in the era of privatization the precious resource, water, has become a “product” from which economic benefit can be derived and which can even be traded. The local governments acquire water “to the city gate” and then they sell it to the city resident at a high mark-up, with the addition of VAT, when the difference goes to the Water Corporations. The neoliberal approach has reached a basic product such as water, without distinction between the socioeconomic situations of people, while placing the burden on the resident. Many Investigation Committees on the topic of the water sector have noted the improper management of the government, which does not prioritize alternative solutions such as desalination, use of treated wastewater, and re-use of water for industry and agriculture. Instead, dozens of water corporations have been established to be used as collection agents and to place the economic burden on the citizen’s back.