Water and Sanitation Infrastructure Planning in Developing Countries
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this graduate-level course on planning water supply and sanitation systems for developing countries. The syllabus covers available technologies but centers on the policy and planning process behind them, including financing, pricing, institutional structure, consumer demand, and community participation. Case studies drawn from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe ground the material in real infrastructure decisions, weighing economic, social, environmental, and public health tradeoffs against each other. Materials include readings, lecture notes, and assignments as published through MIT OCW, free to access with no certificate offered. The course suits students interested in urban planning, development economics, or public health infrastructure who want to understand how governments and communities actually decide where water and sanitation investment goes, not just what technology is available.