The most important role of the consumer is as a participant in the decision-making process. Yet despite consumer capacity to innovate, this is the role most often ignored in top-down supply approaches. In people-focused approaches, consumer participation in decision-making at the project formulation stage helps to build ownership and to ensure that solutions, for example service levels, are aligned more closely to needs, and that costs and cost-recovery approaches are more cognisant of livelihood strategies. This runs contrary to the traditional view that a 'universal' approach - in which all households, irrespective of capacity, are provided with direct connections - is inevitable. These decisions are generally made by the council and operator, and not by the people. In order to reinforce the important role of the consumer, it is necessary to introduce mechanisms for this engagement (for instance, participatory processes, representatives on steering committees and regulatory boards), and to bring about attitudinal change among other stakeholders. Box 6.17 provides an illustration of community shareholding in Nelspruit, South Africa.