We investigate the impact of criminal violence on the delivery of an urban basic service, electricity, through a comparison of international experiences. We find that the structure of criminal violence matters more than its level. If the violence is of an unorganized nature, or if local criminal organizations take no interest in electricity theft, service providers may be able to deliver electricity through regulated commercial relationships with local residents, even in areas of high violence. Where criminal organizations seek to profit from electricity theft, regulated commercial delivery of electricity will be extremely limited or impossible, even when those organizations maintain overt violence at low levels. Successful experiences of regulated commercial delivery involve using technology to reduce opportunities for theft as well as practices to improve customer relationships, sometimes supplemented by community engagement. But a necessary condition for success remains physical access to the area by the service provider’s personnel.

中文翻译：

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刑事暴力和提供城市基本服务的国际经验：电力案例

通过比较国际经验，我们调查了刑事暴力对提供城市基本服务，电力的影响。我们发现，刑事暴力的结构比其水平更重要。如果暴力行为是无组织的，或者当地犯罪组织对窃电不感兴趣，则服务提供商甚至可以在与暴力行为严重的地区，通过与当地居民建立规范的商业关系来提供电力。在犯罪组织试图从盗窃电中获利的情况下，即使这些组织维持低水平的公开暴力，受监管的电力商业供应也将极为有限或不可能。规范的商业交付的成功经验包括使用技术减少盗窃的机会以及改善客户关系的实践，有时还需要社区参与。但是，成功的必要条件仍然是服务提供商的人员可以物理访问该区域。