Chief technical officers and senior officials who participated at a Public-Private Partnerships workshop organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat in collaboration with the Management Institute for National Development, an Executive Agency of the Government of Jamaica.
Senior Jamaican officials examine the nuts and bolts of PPPs
3 February 2010
Three-day workshop looks at what is needed to ensure that these “often complex relationships” work effectively
Chief technical officers and senior officials from both the public and private sectors in Jamaica have benefited from a workshop held in the country’s capital, Kingston, which focused on improving their knowledge and understanding of public-private partnerships (PPPs).
Sustainable development principles, best practices and cost benefit analyses were among the topics examined by more than 50 participants, from 26 to 28 January 2010. They also looked at what types of projects make the best PPPs and how to assess whether or not a project is good value for money.
This workshop was organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat in collaboration with the Management Institute for National Development (MIND), an Executive Agency of the Government of Jamaica and the country’s main public sector management training organisation.
“The response that we got from participants at the workshop was excellent,” said MIND’s Chief Executive, Ruby Brown. “Everyone was fully engaged throughout and we had more and more officials wanting to join in on the second and third days.”
What is a public-private partnership?
“It is generally considered as an arrangement between public and private sectors to deliver infrastructure normally provided by the public sector. There is usually a clear agreement of shared objectives for the delivery of these infrastructures.” – Commonwealth Secretariat’s lead adviser on PPPs.
One of the participants was Annette Tingle, an executive project co-ordinator for the Tourism Product Development Company, which is the executive arm of the Ministry of Tourism.
“It was exceedingly beneficial looking at the different types of PPPs that exist,” she reflected. “From my perspective, our discussions on consulting the public were especially of interest. The workshop demonstrated that public consultation should be an intrinsic part of any plan and that if handled correctly there should never be a public outcry because their needs are fully taken into account.”
To date, the Commonwealth Secretariat has assisted over 25 countries on various aspects relating to the development and implementation of PPPs.
The Secretariat’s chief adviser on PPPs, Hee Kong Yong, explains that more and more countries now view PPPs as an alternative method to procure and manage various infrastructure services, but that there are a number of obstacles which often get in the way of these partnerships succeeding.
“There is a huge demand from member countries to conduct similar in-country PPP workshops for senior government officials and investors from the private sector” he said.
“Our work focuses on helping PPPs overcome the many challenges they face in managing these often complex relationships,” he said.
From 10 to 11 February 2010, the Secretariat is organising a workshop in Kuala Lumpur for Malaysia’s PPP unit and other government ministries.
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