Public-private partnership (PPP) in infrastructure is a relatively new experience in most developing countries of the Asian and Pacific region. Although many governments have considered various steps to promote PPPs in their countries, lack of capacity in the public sector remains to be one of the major problems in implementing PPP projects. So far, only few countries have established institutional arrangements and developed manuals and resource materials in support of PPP development and for the capacity-building of their public officials. In the absence of such established institutional arrangements and resource materials, public officials face difficulties in project development and implementation, and general public can have many misunderstandings about PPPs.
This Guidebook describes the overall process and activities usually involved in PPP project development, implementation and management. It has been developed as a general resource material for better understanding of the whole process. The Guidebook also revisits some of the basics of PPPs to help understand the process and the requirements for developing successful projects. As the actual process followed in a country depends on its administrative and institutional arrangements, this Guidebook is not a substitute for manuals/advisory guidelines that many countries have developed∗ and other countries may consider to develop.
The Guidebook is divided into six chapters. Chapter 1 revisits the basics of PPPs in infrastructure. It focuses on three things: the characteristics that make PPPs different from conventional construction projects, models of PPPs, and the basic structure of a PPP project.
Chapter 2 considers the PPP process and the matters that need to be taken into account before any project development starts.
The preparatory activities prior to actual project development tasks are considered in Chapter 3. This chapter identifies the key tasks at the preparatory stage and makes elaborations on those tasks.
Chapter 4 deals with project development and due diligence. It identifies the key tasks involved in project development and describes the details of those tasks.
Procurement is the subject of discussion in Chapter 5. This chapter describes the typical activities involved in this stage.
Chapter 6 is the last chapter of the Guidebook. It considers contract management and dispute resolution.
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* Manuals/handbooks and guidelines have been developed in many countries including Australia, Singapore and South Africa. The development of this Guidebook has also benefited from these manuals and handbooks as well as practices followed in those and other countries.