PPPs: a critique of the green paper

A critique of the European Commission's 2004 Green Paper on PPPs, as well of the European Commission's approach to PPPs

Government subsidies in public-private partnership projects based on altruistic theory

Nowadays, the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme has been widely adopted in infrastructure projects around the world. In PPP projects, the governments participate as a principal and the investors play the role of an agent, and therefore their behaviours and incentive strategies can be explained and designed by the principal-agent theory. As “economic men” with limited rationality, both the governments and the investors have altruistic preferences during cooperation. This paper studies how project participants’ altruistic preferences affect government subsidies based on the principal-agent theory. To this end, a principal-agent model in the presence of altruism is developed. The results show that the amount of government compensation is related to the altruistic preferences, the expected revenue, costs and investors’ efforts. Contrary to intuition, the governments’ altruism actually undermines the investors’ enthusiasm in cooperation and the risk-sharing propensity, although it increases the utilities of both parties. Moreover, when selecting the investors, governments should examine their operating capacity carefully, which has a significant impact on the sustainable development of the projects and even PPP arrangements. The findings contribute new insights into the development of incentive mechanisms between governments and private investors from the perspective of the behavioural preferences. First published online 27 January 202

Sectoral Differentiation, Allocation of Talent, and Financial Development

I present a theory of development in which heterogeneously talented entrepreneurs require credit to start new projects and open new sectors. As the variety of sectors expands during development, the allocation of entrepreneurial talent improves. A key result of the paper is to show that, in addition to increasing the average productivity of the matches between agents and sectors, this process also mitigates informational frictions affecting the functioning of financial markets. Furthermore, the positive impact of sectoral variety on the efficiency of financial markets gives rise to a novel feedback between financial development and R&D effort, which may lead to different types of dynamics. A successful economy typically exhibits a progressive increase in the variety of sectors, which in turn helps to alleviate frictions in the financial markets. However, a poverty trap may also arise. This situation is characterised by a rudimentary productive structure with poor matching of skills to activities, and where the operation of financial markets is severely affected by talent mismatching.Adverse Selection, Informational Frictions, Talent Allocation, Sectoral Diversification, Financial Development.

Meeting investors’ demands in PPP project to improve enthusiasm for participating in green and low-carbon

The use of PPP scheme to guide private investors to actively participate in green and low-carbon development is conducive to filling the funding gap of domestic green and low-carbon transformation. It is important to meet the demands of investors to ensure that investors can permanently participate in PPP low-carbon projects. Due to the high financing leverage, wide coverage, and government’s right to initiate in PPP project, the investors’ demands also include the enhancement of social reputation, and the acquisition of future project market resources besides investment income. To fully understand the purpose of the investors’ participation in PPP projects and provide guidance for further analysis of behavioural influence path, the study systematically analyzes the demands of investors and develops a demand measurement scale. Firstly, based on the characteristics of PPP scheme, six investor’s demands were identified. Secondly, through theoretical analysis, the measurement items of investors’ demand were constructed, and 269 valid data were collected through questionnaire. Finally, carrying out factor analysis, reliability and validity test, the items were revised to get the formal investor demand scale. The research provides guidance for improving the demand satisfaction of investors, which is conducive to attracting private capital to participate in the green low-carbon development strategy of PPP projects, and provides financial guarantee for achieving the ‘double carbon’ goal

Molecular dynamics simulation of observed c(4x4) and c(4x3) C60 alignments on the Si(100) reconstructed surface.

We have implemented a large-scale classical molecular dynamics simulation at constant temperature to provide a theoretical insight into the results of a recently performed experiment on the monolayer and multi-layer formations of molecular films on the Si(100) reconstructed dimerized surface. Our simulation has successfully reproduced all of the morphologies observed on the monolayer film by this experiment. We have obtained the formation of both c(4 4) and c(4 3) structures of the molecules and have also obtained phase transitions of the former into the latter

Public-private partnerships: origin, limitations and prospects for public sector accounting

The main objective of this research is to identify and discuss theoretically the advances, limitations and perspectives pointed by international research to improve the accountability and evaluation aspects of PPPs. This is a theoretical essay based on the Public Choice Theory to show that the PPP accounting treatment is relevant to avoid lack of transparency and accountability, mitigating possible losses in the decision making process and the ineffective allocation of public resources. The discussion of topics reveals the importance of public accounting in measuring the financial and social consequences that the shared responsibility of PPPs can have., defending the public interest and democratic relations. It is argued that different factors may influence PPP accounting issues, involving governance limitations, institutional weaknesses, widespread corruption, lack of transparency, weak regulatory environments, power imbalances between partners, lack of political commitment and trust. Finally, some accounting research questions and topics are presented that should be considered to prevent private interest from overriding the public interest in contracting a PPP

Agency theory perspective on public - private - partnerships: international development project

Purpose – Agency theory suggests that divergences will occur when a principal, e.g. client, and agent e.g. a project manager, interests are different in the execution of a project. The purpose of this paper is to explore if the agency theory can explain the subtleties integral to the behaviours and relationships between players delivering a public-private-partnership (PPP) in the context of an international development (ID) project. The intra-/interpersonal dynamics include governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and private commercial service providers. The authors develop a conceptual framework and provide evidence from a case study of the testing of a Road Safety Toolkit in Kenya to explore several propositions. Design/methodology/approach – Extant literature identified application of the agency theory, and the development of a conceptual framework. A case study describing an ID project was used to validate the propositions prior to the expansion of a research instrument for data collection in the field. Findings – Through the lens of the agency theory and the limitations imposed by exploring a series of propositions, several insightful conclusions have been derived from the case. ID projects have particular nuisances that make them unique when compared to the majority of commercial applications. An added dimension and level of complexity is a consequence of the PPP incorporating government, NGOs and private corporations. The case exemplified the need for PPP ID projects to build on partner networks to influence and disseminate outcomes. Some agency problems were far less prominent than would normally be seen in a commercial project. Research limitations/implications – The methodologies presented in this paper need to be adapted and practiced in different kinds of ID projects in order to get confirmatory analytical results. The limitations imposed by the use of the single case, whilst drawing insightful conclusions, would necessitate greater testing in the field. Practical implications – Although the problems of the agency theory are well researched in the operations management literature, there is limited application to ID projects and no previous research within the context of a PPP. Therefore, this work is important for greater understanding of the specific issues associated with project delivery of an ID. Social implications – Conflicting goals between principals and agents are common for organisations, which in turn affect inter-relationships on an international footing. The agency theory has had little attention in the project management field, yet is fundamental to relationships and communication. Originality/value – There has been little research that explores the agency theory in the context of a PPP involving governments, NGOs and private commercial service providers, executed as an ID project. This work, therefore, exhibits new and novel findings

Promoting the Solar Industry in Ghana through Effective Public-Private Partnership (PPP): Some Lessons from South Africa and Morocco

Over the past decades, solar energy has gained much attention in Ghana, especially after the 2012–2016 power crisis. The government through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) has attempted to increase the shares of solar generation to augment its efforts in reducing the energy deficit of the country, especially in remote and off-grid communities. However, the extent to which PPP has been utilized as a viable tool for solar sector development in Ghana is questionable. This study discusses the current state of PPPs in Ghana’s solar industry and compares how it has been efficiently used as a tool to promote the solar industry in South Africa and Morocco. Fundamental theories such as Altruism, Game, Principal-agent, and Pareto Optimality (PO) were used as analytical tools to examine how PPPs are handled in the selected cases. The study ascertains that the Game and PO are applicable theories that have guided SA and Morocco’s solar infrastructural development. This study discovered that PPP has been efficiently used in SA and Morocco to push its solar industry to be among the best in the world and Ghana can perfectly emulate it. The study further reveals that the Principal-agent analogy and altruistic intent of the Ghanaian government tend to discourage Private sector participation in the solar industry. It further suggests the Pareto Optimality, Game approach, and a win-win transparent attitude towards PPPs. This study recommends a well-developed PPP structure and law for Ghana. It encourages transparency and discourages partisan preferentialism to increase PPPs in Ghana’s solar industry

Between collaboration and competition. Global public-private partnerships against intellectual property crimes

This paper explores the issue area of global public-private partnerships (PPPs) against intellectual property (IP) crimes. It is based on preliminary findings from a PhD research project that included interviews with more than 30 participants of such PPPs from different countries around the world. Key factors that influence the formation, maintenance, termination, and reform of such partnerships are identified by comparing more and less successful PPPs over a period of time. First, the paper introduces the topic of IP crime, also known as counterfeiting and piracy. The paper then proposes a typology of different PPPs, as the term is used in very different ways in the literature. In the subsequent sections of the paper, empirical examples of global PPPs against IP crimes are analyzed, whose secretariats are hosted by three public international organizations: Interpol, the World Customs Organization (WCO), and the World Health Organization (WHO). By comparing the different paths of these three international organizations and their PPPs, five key factors are identified that influence the formation, maintenance, termination, and reform of such PPPs: (1) common ground, (2) absolute and/or relative gains of resources, (3) the management of the PPP and its discretion, (4) the representation of stakeholders, and (5) the policy pursued by the PPP. -- Dieses Arbeitspapier untersucht das Themenfeld der globalen Öffentlich-Privaten Partnerschaften (ÖPPs) gegen Produktpiraterie. Es basiert auf vorläufigen Erkenntnissen aus der Forschung für eine Doktorarbeit, für die Experteninterviews mit mehr als 30 Teilnehmern solcher ÖPPs in unterschiedlichen Ländern der Welt durchgeführt wurden. Durch den Vergleich unterschiedlich erfolgreicher ÖPPs über einen längeren Zeitraum wurden Schlüsselfaktoren identifiziert, welche die Gründung, Erhaltung, Beendung und Reform von solchen ÖPPs beeinflussen. Zunächst führt das Arbeitspapier in die Materie Produktpiraterie ein. Dann wird eine Typologie von ÖPPs vorgestellt, welche notwendig ist, weil der Begriff sehr unterschiedlich in der Literatur verwendet wird. In den anschließenden drei Sektionen des Arbeitspapiers werden drei empirische Beispiele von globalen ÖPPs untersucht, die bei drei verschiedenen Internationalen Organisationen angesiedelt sind. Dies sind Interpol, die Weltzollorganisation und die Weltgesundheitsorganisation. Durch den Vergleich der unterschiedlichen Entwicklungen, die diese Internationalen Organisationen und ihre ÖPPs gemacht haben, werden fünf Schlüsselfaktoren identifiziert, welche die Gründung, Erhaltung, Beendung und Reform dieser ÖPPs beeinflussen: (1.) eine gemeinsame Bezugsebene, (2.) das Streben nach absoluten und/oder relativen Gewinnen, (3.) das Management der ÖPP und ihr Handlungsspielraum, (4.) die Repräsentation der Interessengruppen in der ÖPP und (5.) die Politik, welche von der ÖPP verfolgt wird.

A Theory of Workers' Remittances with an Application to Morocco

This paper provides a model on how altruism, "attachment" to the home country, and portfolio diversification may act as potential motives behind workers' remittances. It shows that the level of workers' remittances depends on how great are their degrees of altruism and "attachment" to their home country, and should also depend on interest rate differentials between the home country and the country of residence if portfolio diversification motives are significant in the decision to remit. The model is applied to Morocco using co-integration techniques. The paper then discusses the stability of remittances in Morocco and the policyimplications in light of the empirical findings