Benchmarking Program

Benchmarking provides water utilities with a useful tool to measure their performance by collecting relevant information on different performance areas, such as technical performance, financial viability and consumer satisfaction. In a next step, the comparison of performance indicators with other utilities helps to identify and set targets for areas of improvement.

Besides the benefits for utilities, information from benchmarking

• provide ministries, agencies and governments with an overview of the current status of water supply in their country and recommended solutions to their development challenges, and
• serve as basis for international organizations and donors like Asian Development Bank to develop effective and efficient investment projects in the sector.

Since 2004 SEAWUN has facilitated different benchmarking trainings and surveys for its member utilities as well as other water utilities in the region. The data from all benchmarking surveys are included in the international benchmarking database of IB-Net.

Benchmarking Program I
The first Benchmarking Project was carried out from June 2004 to April 2005, and was supported by ADB. 47 water utilities from Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam participated in this exercise and collected detailed data for the year 2003. 

As part of this program a benchmarking node was set up on the SEAWUN website. The node comprises of a online database with detailed information from the benchmarking survey. It allows users to access performance data of the participating water utilities. Access the benchmarking data at bm.seawun.org.

In June 2005, the results were jointly published by SEAWUN and ADB in the Databook of Southeast Asian Water Utilities.

Benchmarking Program II
With the aim to establish benchmarking as an ongoing activity a second survey was conducted from 2006 to 2007. This time, 40 water utilities from Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines and Viet Nam joined and provided information on their performance for the year 2005.

Funding for the preparation and publication of the Databook of Southeast Asian Water Utilities 2005 was provided again by ADB.

Continuous Improvement and Benchmarking (CIB)
Following the benchmarking surveys and based on their results a program for improving the performance of water utilities was developed, which applied the continuous improvement and benchmarking approach (CIB). It usually focuses on a specific process whose performance can be enhanced. For the targeted process, each utility will exchange its performance indicators, process maps, work practices, results and other experiences that together enable other utilities to identify where it can improve its processes and what greater performance it should achieve. In February 2006, SEAWUN organized together with ADB a 5-day workshop to introduce this method to selected member utilities.

Benchmarking Program III
Since the benchmarking programs I and II were completed SEAWUN membership has considerably grown. To provide new members with the opportunity to participate in a benchmarking exercise SEAWUN conducted a third survey in 2009. This time, 30 water utilities from Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore collected and submitted their performance data for the year 2007.

• Collection and Analysis of Utility Performance Benchmarks for Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia and Singapore

  As a follow up of the inaugural SEAWUN benchmarking survey in 2004 and the Benchmarking Program phase 2 in 2006 funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), In 2009, SEAWUN was selected by WSP/WB to undertake the assignment of Collection and Analysis of Utility Performance Benchmarks for Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia and Singapore. The objective of the program is to include a set of 20 utilities from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia and Singapore with utility performance data (as outlined in the IBNET Toolkit Framework) for presentation on the IBNET website (www.ib-net.org).

   

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  SEAWUN Benchmarking Workshop

  On 18-22 February 2008, SEAWUN organised and Benchmarking Workshop in Bangkok, Thailand as part of the WOPS program (RETA 6396), utilities within the South East Asia Water Utilities Network (SEAWUN) were to be assisted in improving their performance through the introduction of continuous improvement and benchmarking techniques.
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  Data Book of Southeast Asian Water Utilities 2005 published

  The second “Data Book of Southeast Asian Water Utilities 2005” has been published in early 2008 as part of the benchmarking program phase 2. It should be underlined the importance of this data book as one milestone of our SEAWUN mission to improve the performance of our members.
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  Updated Status and Survey Questionnaire of Benchmarking Program Phrase 2

  Following the successful first phase of the Benchmarking Program with the survey of 47 Southeast Asian Water utilities in 2004, SEAWUN has embarked on Phase 2 of the program that will include the collection and analysis of 2005 performance data from about 80-90 member utilities. About 40 water utilities will be selected to be included in a data book representing the best utilities among the SEAWUN member countries.

• Databook & Overview of the 2004 SEAWUN Benchmarking Program

  Benchmarking node at bm.seawun.org was designed  to provide users with analytical and comparative capability. In additon, more useful information and results may be obtained through the Databook of 2004 SEAWUN Benchmarking Program as well as a material on the Program Overview.