ion of services. Decentralisation of responsibility would imply a similar decentralisation of revenue generation and a lesser level of reliance on central INFRASTRUCTURE TO 2030: TELECOM, LAND TRANSPORT, WATER AND ELECTRICITY - ISBN 92-64-02398-4 © OECD 2006 5. THE IMPACTS OF CHANGE ON THE LONG-TERM FUTURE DEMAND FOR WATER SECTOR INFRASTRUCTURE forms of funding. Achieving a balance between central and local forms of revenue generation and its allocation will continue to exercise the minds of policy makers. Technological changes and better ICT will enable there to be more sophisticated forms of revenue raising, tailored to more individual requirements and consumption patterns. This does mean, however, that there will be a great deal more interaction between customers, consumers and service providers in ways that are not immediately apparent today, albeit a lot of this may be "virtual" and there might need to be moves towards individual accounts management. Many of the changes, whether in the developed or developing world, will depend for success on trust and the management of expectations. In this the role of the service providers but also of stakeholder groups representing ranges of interest will be important. Trust will also be important in respect of how growing forms of social risk are managed and accommodated. These risks would be associated with climate change effects, such as drought and flooding, security of supply, the security of the services and the ability to support economic growth. Overall, socioeconomic changes are expected to increase unit costs of water service infrastructure delivery into the foreseeable future. This will be due to the following, singly and in combination: population growth; population profile changes; rising unit demand and expectations for water services; more extensive service provision; and increasing use of private sector services with risk costs. Technological changes Water infrastructure technology in developed countries exists in its present form in large measure due to s