The water sector is often highly fragmented, with several small operators in many countries. For example, the EU counts over 27,000 operators and the US more than 150,000. In contexts where fragmentation limits efficiency or investment capacity, encouraging the consolidation of smaller utilities into larger regional operators can help achieve economies of scale and improve service delivery. Governments can support this process through coordinated measures such as setting thresholds that trigger consolidation, promoting inter- municipal cooperation and enabling shared service platforms for procurement, technology deployment or financing. However, solutions must remain place- based and flexible to local contexts, recognizing that no single governance model can fit all situations.Industry collaboration CASE STUDY 16 Netherlands’ regional consolidation Prior to the 1970s, the Netherlands had approximately 150 municipal water companies and 2,000 local water boards, serving a population of 11.5 million. Government- led reforms initiated in the 1970s introduced a minimum customer base of 100,000 connections and empowered local authorities to consolidate utilities into limited companies, promoting corporatization. A second wave of voluntary mergers followed during the liberalization trends of the 1990s and early 2000s. These reforms reduced the number of water companies by 70% over 25 years, reaching the current number, 10, by 2007.42 In parallel, national and local governments consolidated water boards, with further mergers in the 2010s, reducing their number to 21.43Reliable data is the backbone of water governance. Data enables evidence-based decisions, supports regulatory enforcement, improves risk management and attracts investment by reducing information asymmetry. Data also enables development of more accurate and trustworthy AI tools.40 Countries should invest in national water data infrastructure facilities, which can collect, standardize, store and disseminate data on availability, usage, quality and reuse across sectors. To ensure ecosystem communication and interoperability, it is crucial to mandate open data standards, covering various data formats, APIs and procurement standards. Interoperability should also facilitate alignment with other utilities such as electricity and gas, with climate goals and with urban planning. Interoperable national open water data infrastructure CASE STUDY 15 UK’s Stream water data portal Stream is a utility-led, regulator-seeded initiative under development in the UK, which aims at establishing an open, standardized national water data capability by aggregating more than 160 diverse datasets (so far), from anonymized water meter readings to water quality reports to performance reviews. The initiative reunites 16 of the 18 major water companies and data management and strategy consulting firms. The programme produced an open data framework, machine-readable metadata and application programming interface (API) specifications and a pragmatic data analysis process to prioritize high-value dataset releases, while addressing legal sensitivity, stewardship and governance through proposed operating and datatrust models.41 Bridging the €6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap: A Playbook 30

Bridging the %E2%82%AC6.5 Trillion Water Infrastructure Gap A Playbook 2025