This paper offers a diagnostic of thewater and wastewater sector for the Republic of Belarus,addressing the sector's institutional, organizational,technical, and economic aspects, with a specific focus onurban areas. Significant national investment programs haveenabled Belarus to significantly improve the quality ofwater and wastewater services, but major challenges remain.Water utilities show an overall acceptable performance thatcould be improved upon, especially in small towns. Thesector's legal and institutional framework iswell-defined and functional, but an insufficient operationalregulation undermines the efficiency of services. The waterand wastewater sector in Belarus urgently requiresmodernization. This review recommends that utilities beregionalized to generate economies of scale; the capacities,means, and resources be pooled; and access to funds befacilitated. Utility regulation needs to be reinforced bythe introduction of benchmarking or yardstick competition,and by the set-up of performance-based contracts with theirasset-owners. Key recommendations to improve the efficiencyof utility operations include the development of aperformance-oriented management culture and the involvementof the private sector.
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