Public-Private Partnerships (PPP): How can PPPs help deliver better services?

Whether you are a policy maker, civil society representative, or student, we hope that these learning resources, activities, and social elements will provide you with a broad overview of public-private partnership (PPP) concepts and a basic understanding the role of PPPs in the delivery of infrastructure services. By directly addressing the opportunities and challenges of procuring and maintaining infrastructure through effective PPPs, you will learn about when a PPP is the right choice, what is involved in preparing PPPs that attract partners that will deliver, and how change is managed if a PPP takes an unpredictable turn. In this course, you will learn about current practices and perspectives on PPPs from over 20 government officials, practitioners, and other PPP experts from all over the world. Why is gaining a comprehensive understanding of PPPs so important today? Developing country governments face immense challenges to finance, implement and maintain infrastructure to deliver and sustain basic services to their citizens and foster economic growth. Despite meaningful strides made in emerging markets in recent years, many people still do not have access to reliable and safe basic services. PPPs have been shown that they are able, under the right circumstances, to facilitate growth and improve service provision. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) are defined as a way of contracting for developing and maintaining infrastructure services, using private sector innovation and skills to manage operations that often leverage private finance. There is, however, no universally accepted definition of a PPP, and you will notice that different terms are used to describe similar types of PPP projects, depending on the country. The use of PPPs is not new. While more prevalent in recent years, different forms of PPPs have been used to deliver infrastructure services for hundreds of years and PPPs remain a relevant tool to be considered as a means to increasing and improving the delivery of infrastructure services. At the same time, successfully implementing a PPP has its own complexities that governments must be committed to and capable of addressing, recognizing that PPPs are not appropriate for all infrastructure projects. There have been successful PPPs as well as failures. Therefore, our approach to introducing PPPs is to provide sufficient information in each week, balancing positives and the negatives, so that you can form your own views about PPPs and what is required to make them work in a particular situation. Designing and implementing a PPP to deliver infrastructure services can be a complex and challenging process. Experience has shown that many countries with a track record of successful PPPs have built a sound PPP framework. Consequently, the objective of a country is to build a sound framework to facilitate the execution of PPP projects.

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Cecilia M. Briceno-Garmendia

Lead Economist in the Global Practice of Transport and ICT of the World Bank

Courtesy of The United Nations Economic Commission on Europe (UNECE)

UNECE's major aim is to promote pan-European economic integration. To do so, it brings together 56 countries located in the European Union, non-EU Western and Eastern Europe, South-East Europe and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and North America. All these countries dialogue and cooperate under the aegis of UNECE on economic and sectoral issues. However, all interested United Nations member States may participate in the work of UNECE. Over 70 international professional organizations and other non-governmental organizations take part in UNECE activities.

Michael Klein

Professor at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management and Senior Adjunct Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies

Tony Gomez-Ibanez

Derek C. Bok Professor of Urban Planning and Public Policy, Harvard University

Isabel Rial

Senior Economist of the Expenditure Policy Division in the Fiscal Affairs Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Richard Florizone

Luis Fernando Andrade

President, National Infrastructure Agency of Colombia

Edward Farquharson

Principal Adviser at the European PPP Expertise Centre (EPEC)

James Ballingall

Head of International, Infrastructure UK

Kangsoo Kim

Executive Director, Public and Private Infrastructure Investment Management Center, Korea Development Institute

Pradeep Singh

CEO of the Mohali Campus and Deputy Dean of the Indian School of Business (ISB)

S. Brian Samuel

PPP Coordinator, Caribbean Development Bank

David Staples

Director of Williams Industries in Barbados

Marcos Siguera Moraes

Former CEO, PPP Programs of Minas Gerais and current Consultant of the Inter-American Development Bank

Nena Stoiljkovic

Nena Stoiljkovic is a Vice President of Global Client Services and a member of the IFC Management Team. In this capacity, Ms. Stoiljkovic is one of two vice presidents responsible for IFC Operations. She has a leading role in developing IFC’s strategic direction and its expansion into poorer countries.

Tumi Makgabo

Tumi Makgabo is a South African television presenter, best known for her work from 2000 to 2005 as a current affairs presenter at Cable News Network International and anchor of its Inside Africa programme

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP): How can PPPs help deliver better services?