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EURASIA
After the breakup of the Soviet Union, the Eurasian countries under review (Armenia, Georgia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan) were left with sufficiently developed water supply and sanitation, district heating and urban public transport. In terms of the share of population with access to these basic services, levels were almost comparable to those in developed countries. Though infrastructure created during the Soviet period was characterized by high capital intensity and energy consumption, service delivery was reliable. At that time, the major shortcoming stemmed from the fact that infrastructure facilities were designed with unreasonably high levels of consumption of water and heating in mind. This resulted in a situation in which public utilities in Eurasian countries had to bear significant overheads and other costs related to the maintenance of a redundant infrastructure that were not covered by user tariffs. In contrast to other basic services, little attention was paid during Soviet rule to the management of solid waste. Solid waste infrastructure facilities were financed from state budget transfers, while operating costs were mostly covered from high tar-
iffs set for industrial users on the basis of cross-subsidies. The break-up of the USSR triggered numerous structural changes in the public sector in the countries of the Eurasia region. The absence of any renewal of fixed assets caused a deterioration of the quality of public services as well as a rise in the accident rate in utility facilities and networks. In many cities, water supply services became unsustainable. Facilities for waste water treatment and solid waste disposal stopped working. District heat services were discontinued in many cities of the Caucasus and Central Asia, including in capital cities. Over the past decade, the degradation of the utility infrastructure in most countries has been halted and, to some extent, reversed. Governments in region have adopted a range of legislative, institutional and economic measures aiming to reform urban basic services, provide incentives for enhanced efficiency of service provision and encourage an enabling environment for public participation. Despite these efforts, public service provision often fails to reach the levels of the Soviet period. For example, the capital cities of Armenia (Yerevan) and Georgia (Tbilisi) are currently experiencing enormous difficulties in providing heating services.