Africa lags behind the world on operational and financial progress to maintain safe drinking water services. In rural Mali, we explore the implications of monthly flat fee contributions and volumetric (pay-as-you-fetch) payments for water use and revenue generation. By assessing 4413 months of data across 177 handpumps, we find that once payment modalities switch from volumetric payments to monthly flat fees, a waterpoint registers a more than three-times higher monthly revenue. While flat fees cover a higher share of the operational costs of providing reliable water services, a subsidy gap persists. Flat fees appear to stimulate daily water use which more than doubles compared to volumetric payments. We estimate that a 1 °C increase in average monthly temperature is associated with 180 more litres of water used every day per handpump, emphasising the importance of climate-resilient water supplies. Based on these insights, we discuss the role of professional service delivery models to support reliable drinking water services for rural communities.

非洲在维持安全饮用水服务的运营和财务进展方面落后于世界。在马里农村地区，我们探讨了每月固定费用缴费和按量付费（按量付费）对用水和创收的影响。通过评估 177 个手压泵 4413 个月的数据，我们发现，一旦支付方式从按量支付转变为按月固定费用，供水点的月收入会增加三倍以上。虽然固定费用在提供可靠供水服务的运营成本中所占的比例较高，但补贴缺口仍然存在。固定费用似乎刺激了每日用水量，与按量付费相比，每日用水量增加了一倍多。我们估计，月平均气温每升高 1°C，每个手压泵每天的用水量就会增加 180 升，这强调了适应气候变化的供水的重要性。基于这些见解，我们讨论了专业服务提供模式在支持农村社区可靠饮用水服务方面的作用。