On June 21^st, in collaboration with the International Growth Centre (IGC), IPA hosted an event on electricity and water utility provision research. The overall objective of the event was to create a forum to discuss how research could help inform policies on utility provision in Zambia. To motivate this discussion, case studies of projects recently supported by IPA and IGC were presented, and a panel of policy-makers in Zambia shared their views.

Professor Kelsey Jack (Tufts University) and Mr. Grant Smith (University of Cape Town) gave an in-depth presentation of recent findings from a study of the effect of prepaid electricity metering on electricity consumption, household welfare, and revenue in the City of Cape Town. The studies presented at the workshop covered a number of important topics in the water and electricity sectors, including how customers perceive prices and how they respond to changes in prices.