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This paper shows that the evolution of French water governance since the 1960s is globally consistent with the OECD Principles on Water Governance. It covers simultaneously what concerns resources, services and eventually policies that bridge both types, per groups of governance principles. The paper illustrates that, beyond this overall positive assessment, a lot of shortcomings and weaknesses and therefore of potential improvements can be identified. It proposes a preliminary reflection about the impact of governance changes and about indicators needed to measure these impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An in-depth historical analysis of the development of water services in France, using the overall European experience as a background, illustrates that the centralisation vs. decentralisation issue is arguably more important than the public vs. private one, which is more openly discussed. In the end, despite the prominent role of large private utilities, water infrastructure is publicly held, while water billing is generalised, as on most of the European continent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]