The macro objective of a communication strategy is to enable an understanding among all stakeholders of this arrangement to improve the quality and availability of infrastructure, allocate appropriate risks associated with the project to the best suited stakeholder, promote innovation, and ensure efficiency, effectiveness and economy in all stages of project development and implementation.
The key objectives of a comprehensive and effective communication strategy include the following:
• Identify stakeholders such as other Government agencies involved in the project, Non-Government organisations (NGOs), target population etc. and continuously gauge their perception of the project. Any concerns that the stakeholders might have regarding the project need to be adequately addressed in a timely manner throughout the project development and implementation stage.
• Develop trust, credibility and acceptability for the project by ensuring transparency in the project development process and providing adequate opportunities for communication and feedback amongst the stakeholders.
• Create a favourable environment for the implementation and success of the project by positively affecting stakeholder perception of the project.
If it meets these objectives, the communications strategy will enable greater involvement and project ownership by stakeholders, set realistic expectations, address misunderstandings and misinformation regarding the project, maintains an information resource centre, and helps attract private sector interest. Further, an effective communication strategy will enable fine-tuning of the project structure and improve the sequencing of the development process, thereby ensuring the acceptance, sustainability and durability of the PPP project.