1. Government Entity: The Government Entity is responsible for project identification and Screening. Firstly, each Government Entity must collate a longlist of projects and, in conjunction with the Department of Finance, undertake an initial needs assessment and costing analysis to draft Project Concept Reports, and inform the final shortlist of Priority Projects that will be published. Moreover, the Government Entity must undertake qualitative Value for Money analysis to sort projects on the likelihood that procuring them as PPPs will realise Value for Money savings.
Based on the Pipeline of Priority Projects prepared and published by the Department of Finance, the relevant Government Entity must undertake the Screening process, as shown in the flowchart above, and analyse if testing for PPP suitability is mandatory. If the project value has been estimated at above AED 200 million, the Government Entity must necessarily proceed with testing for PPP suitability. If the project value is below AED 200 million, the Government Entity must make a choice: either the project can be traditionally procured, or, if initial analysis reveals that there are compelling reasons for the procurement of the project as a PPP - such as significant Value for Money savings, or the presence of a truly innovative private sector solution - the Government Entity can proceed with the preparation of the project as a PPP, as outlined in Section 3.
If the Government Entity is proceeding with testing for PPP suitability, it must first constitute a PPP Project Team consisting of members as determined by the Director General of the entity. If a decision to proceed with the hiring of Transaction Advisors as part of the PPP Project Team is made, government entities must ensure that the budget for the Transaction Advisor's fees are sanctioned herein.
2. Department of Finance: The Department of Finance will be in charge of reviewing and approving the Project Concept Reports submitted by all government entities and publishing the Pipeline of Priority Projects, from which a project shall be initiated and screened for PPP suitability in line with the flowchart provided above. Whilst the tasks stated herein are to be carried out entirely by the Government Entity in general, the Department of Finance also has the prerogative to initiate a project should it so desire - particularly if it receives an unsolicited proposal directly from the private sector (see Annexure for guidance on unsolicited proposals), or if the Government Entity requests the Department of Finance to lead the initiation stage due to overcapacity. If the Department of Finance initiates a project, it shall coordinate with the Government Entity to prepare the Project Concept Report, which shall be reviewed by the Partnership Committee and approved by the Supreme Fiscal Committee regardless of project value.
If the Government Entity decides to test a project outside the pipeline list for PPP suitability, it must prepare a Project Concept Report, which will then be submitted to the Department of Finance for review and approval, for which they will have a period of two weeks.
3. Supreme Fiscal Committee: The Supreme Fiscal Committee will be in charge of approving the Pipeline of Priority Projects prior to publication by the Department of Finance.
4. Partnership Committee: The Partnership Committee is to be formed at each Government Entity prior to the publication of the Pipeline of Priority Projects, which shall be approved by them prior to sharing with the Department of Finance. Pursuant to Article 11 of the Law, the members of the Committee must be nominated by the Director General of the Government Entity, and must include a member from the Department of Finance on a project-specific basis if the value of the project being procured is greater than AED 200 million.