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One of the major issues that the cities of developing countries face is to offer quality public services to an urban population that is not very solvable and increases very day. The extension of neighborhoods in urban peripheries, where demographic growth is concentrated, represents an important challenge for utilities operators, since they need to develop socio-cultural access and to implement specific modes of intervention. This article is based on the study of three African cities (Maputo, Ouagadougou and Kisumu). It analyzes pilot projects led by water operators with the support of credit institutions, aiming at subcontracting this public service to small, local private operators. It presents the first results of this arrangement and seeks to identify continuities as well as breaks in the commercialized supply of water in these three cities.