Public-private partnership

From ArticleWorld

A public-private partnership is one that involves the private sector to deliver services, resources, and infrastructure traditionally the lookout of governments or local authorities. The government agency stays involved, but usually in a bureaucratic role, or that of a friendly regulatory, or similar role. As more governments and non-governmental organizations (NGO) strive to function 'like businesses', businesses themselves are being roped in to provide civic facilities. These endeavors are often cited as examples of 'privatization', but this is an incomplete description because government agencies do remain involved.

Public-private partnerships share risk and responsibility, investment and rewards. When government if perceived to be inefficient, the private sector steps in to provide services and use a more streamlined, less bureaucratic approach. The many different kinds of PPPs can vary in terms of financing, design, construction, pricing, or maintenance of the facility. A PPP could be a venture by a local government agency to outsource garbage collection and waste management to a private company, or a school financed, built, and operated by the private sector for a regional authority. Some public-private partnerships take the form of Build-Operate-Own-Transfer schemes, particularly for large undertakings such as power projects, or railway or road expansion. In addition to national governments and companies, PPPs are also being entered into by international NGOs and multilateral organizations such as the World Health Organisation, which has partnered with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Prominent examples of PPPs include maintenance of New York City's Central Park, the functioning of the London Underground, many prisons in the United States, the water suppply system in Manila, international airports around the world, and the California Fuel Cell Partnership.