Potential and Pitfalls of Frugal Innovation in the Water Sector: Insights from Tanzania to Global Value Chains

Abstract

Abstract:Water is perhaps the most intertwined, and basic, resource on our planet. Nevertheless, billions face water-related challenges, varying from lack of water and sanitation services to hindrances on livelihoods and socio-economic activities. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recognize the broad role that water has for development, and also call for the private sector to participate in solving these numerous development challenges. This study looks into the potential of frugal innovations as a means for the private sector to engage in water-related development challenges. Our findings, based on a case study and literature review, indicate that frugal innovations have potential in this front due to their focus on affordable, no-frills solutions. However, we also recognize pitfalls related to frugal innovations in the water sector. Although the innovations would, in principle, be sustainable, deficiencies related to scale and institutional structures may emerge. These deficiencies are linked to the importance of water in a variety of processes, both natural and manmade, as well as to the complexity of global production-consumption value chains. Increasing the innovations' sustainability impact requires broader acknowledgement of the underlying value chains and their diverse links with water. A holistic view on water can mitigate water-related business risks while increasing wellbeing on an individual level.

Introducing a Sustainability Evaluation Framework based on the Sustainable Development Goals applied to Four Cases of South African Frugal Innovation

“…Contrarily to research strengthening the connection between frugal innovation and sustainability, Rosca, Arnold, and Bendul () underlined that sustainability is no binding feature of frugal innovations. Hyvärinen, Keskinen, and Varis () illustrated a frugal innovation example of the water sector and pointed out that sustainability evaluation should consider the whole value chain. These different approaches show the need to further investigate potential interrelations in order to identify possible conditions or key contextual factors.…”

SDGs and Innovation in the Business Context Literature Review

“…In many works [82,[87][88][89], innovation and SDGs have proven to be closely connected, especially in the industrial sector [73], starting from the patenting process [59,90], passing through the strategies of open innovation [91], up to a focus on the frugal [92,93] and reverse innovation [94]. There is also a link between sustainability and the market [91], product and process innovation [95], and the possibility to connect the concept of innovation to each SDG [96].…”

Approach for a Pattern-Based Development of Frugal Innovations

“…In Tanzania, it removes the need to boil drinking water, which usually consumes firewood or charcoal. In doing so, greenhouse gases are reduced and deforestation and adverse health effects are avoided (Hyvärinen et al, 2016). In practice, there are many other examples of frugal innovations.…”