By 2030 more than half of India’s population of more than one billion people will live in urban areas. Currently, more than 280 million Indians (28 percent of the population) live in urban areas. Only 65 percent of urban Indians have access to tapped water and only 28 percent of households are connected to a sewage system. To provide their citizens with clean drinking water and sanitation services, governments need to have infrastructure finance systems in place and improve urban service delivery.

The Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion – Debt Market project works with the Indian government at the national, state and local levels to improve systems for delivery of water and sanitation services – especially those that benefit the urban poor.
FIRE-D technical assistance:

• Trains urban managers in proven methods for planning, improving and expanding urban infrastructure;
• Develops financial management and accounting systems for urban governments to foster accountability and provide transparency;
• Enhances public resource mobilization and tax administration;
• Creates channels for redressing grievances between citizens and the governments through the introduction of E-governance;
• Establishes mechanisms for pooling financial resources across public and private sectors and geographic regions; and
• Improves financial viability of cities to encourage private sector investment in infrastructure.

FIRE-D also works hand in hand with the Government of India to implement the country’s National Urban Renewal Mission (NURM). The project supports NURM’s mandated reforms, infrastructure investment projects and the national government’s efforts to decentralize urban management.