P3 projects can have long-term implications for government as the operations and maintenance period can extend for a long period (30 year agreements have been used for roads and schools). To help ensure that the expected project benefits are received, the project procurement is efficiently and effectively conducted and responsibilities and accountabilities are clearly understood and decision-making is made at the appropriate level, a governance structure must be in place for each project. The governance structure can vary between projects depending on a number of factors including project size, the complexity of the project, the number of organizations involved in the procurement, market conditions and the skills and experience of the project team.
Projects are either a "Single Ministry" or a "Cross Ministry" project. A Single Ministry project affects only that one ministry responsible for the program under which the asset will be used, and the single ministry will own, operate and maintain the infrastructure (i.e. one ministry is both the Program Ministry and Service Delivery Ministry and no SIOs are involved). A roads project is an example of a Single Ministry P3. A Cross-Ministry project impacts more than one ministry. For example, the program delivery may be the responsibility of one ministry while developing, operating and maintaining the infrastructure to deliver that program is the responsibility of a second ministry. SIOs may also be involved in the project. As there are more stakeholders in a Cross Ministry project, developing and delivering the project is more complex and the Cross Ministry project requires a more robust governance structure. The Chair of the Deputy Ministers' Oversight Committee determines whether a project is a Single Ministry or Cross Ministry project.
The governance structures for a Single Ministry and Cross Ministry project are described as follows:
■ A Single Ministry project is not required to establish a Deputy Ministers' Project Steering Committee (DMPSC). At the discretion of the Deputy Minister responsible for the project, the function of the Deputy Ministers' Project Steering Committee can be filled by that Deputy Minister. An Assistant Deputy Ministers' Project Review Committee (ADMPRC) is required for the project and report to the DMPSC (or the Deputy Minister if no DMPSC is in place).
■ A Cross Ministry project will establish a Deputy Ministers' Project Steering Committee to provide detailed project oversight and guidance. An Assistant Deputy Ministers' Project Review Committee (ADMPRC) is required for the project and reports to the DMPSC.
The Project Manager is responsible for managing the project team and delivering the project in accordance with the scope, budget, timelines and other guidelines established by the ADMPRC. The Project Manager reports to the ADMPRC (see Appendix C.7 for the Project Manager Roles and Responsibilities).
Potential organizational structures are shown in Figure 9 (in Appendices C.2, C.4 and C.7). The structure used for a project should fit the project's scope, complexity and risk.