How to use the Guide

The Guide can be used in a number of ways. For example:

•  as a broad guide to procurement and implementation issues in PPPs;

•  as an introduction to the information to be requested from PPP advisers; and

•  as a starting point to learn more about specific aspects of PPP design

Because it has been designed as a good practice sourcebook, the value of the Guide ultimately depends on the value of the information sources provided in it. These sources are indicated in the "Guidance Details" section at the end of the Guide. They contain the title of the publication, its author(s), date of publication and a brief paragraph explaining the topics covered in the publication.

All sources of guidance have a reference number to guide the reader to further information about the issue discussed in the text. This is done by using the symbol " Guidance" next to the relevant reference number.

Most sources relate to existing PPP guidelines or public policy material which can be accessed via the internet. In those cases, the references include the hyperlink. For publications, such as printed books or other published material that cannot be accessed via the internet, the source description includes the ISBN details.

The Guide has inevitable limitations that users should bear in mind:

•  In a rapidly changing environment, such as that characterised by infrastructure PPPs worldwide, new practices develop quickly, making existing ones obsolete In preparing the Guide, an effort has been made to review and recommend the most up to date PPP guidelines and documentation currently available.

•  The Guide is written in English4.Most of the PPP guidance currently available comes from countries such as Australia or the United Kingdom - which have extensive PPP experience - or from international organisations, such as the World Bank, whose institutional mandate includes the gathering of best practice worldwide In the case of the latter, although the language of the guidance is English, the content draws on experience from non-English-speaking countries and therefore such sources are applicable to a wider audience.

•  The Guide also includes references to available PPP guidance material in non-English-speaking European countries such as France, Germany and Greece. This Guide, however, only references the original language guidance source.

•  The legal framework in place in a specific country needs to be taken into account when designing a PPP arrangement Annex 2 of the Guide discusses some of the basic principles of PPP legal frameworks.

•  This Guide does not in any way replace the need for an Authority to take professional advice on legal, technical, financial, environmental and other matters. The Guide should, how-ever, assist Authorities in having a more productive dialogue with their advisers.

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4   Translations of the Guide are available in Italian and Polish at:  http://www.eib.org/epec/library/index.htm.  Further translations will be made available.