'Public-Private Partnerships for Urban Water Utilities: A Review of Experiences in Developing Countries' analyzes the market growth of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the developing world since 1990, and the performance of more than 65 large water PPP projects representing more than 100 million people for access, service quality, operational efficiency, and tariff levels. Although a relatively small portion of the water utilities in the developing world are operated under PPPs (about 7 percent in 2007), the urban population served by private water operators has grown every year since 1990. Despite many difficulties encountered by PPP projects and a few contract terminations, a large majority of contracts awarded since 1990 are still in place. The track record for improving service and efficiency reaffirms the value of PPPs to help turn around poorly performing water utilities, even though the level of private financing did not match initial expectations. Over time, a more realistic market has developed, the number of private investors from developing countries has grown, and contract designs have become more pragmatic concerning risk allocations between partners. The water sector has many features that set it apart from other infrastructure sectors. This book suggests the need for careful consideration of those specificities to successfully involve private operators. Although concessions with private financing have worked in a few places, contractual arrangements that combine private operation with public financing appear to be the most sustainable option in many countries. Policy makers, stakeholders, and donors need to remain heavily engaged in the water sector, especially in the poorest countries and during a global financial crisis. This book contributes to a better understanding of the various options to tackle the many challenges of providing water and sanitation services to urban populations in the developing world.

This book examines the role played by business in urban water governance by analyzing the evolution of the global private water sector along with four public-private partnerships in Mexico and the U.S. The local nature of water services often hides the global developments behind the rise of transnational water corporations, which have gone from being local operators to becoming dynamic and powerful actors within an interconnected transnational space for water. This book focuses on the French groups Veolia and Suez, two of the most prominent private actors in global water governance, and the development and adaptation strategies of both companies in the cities of Aguascalientes, Mexico City, Atlanta, and Milwaukee over the past 30 years. Drawing on over 100 interviews conducted with corporate executives, public authorities, and local users of water services, this book moves beyond the simplistic dichotomy of the public-private debate and develops a theoretical framework that analyzes the economic and political power wielded by transnational business actors in global water governance. Not only does the book explain how Veolia and Suez strategically mobilize resources at difference scales in order to expand their global operations, but it also provides a nuanced picture of how state regulation remains of central importance to understanding the dynamics and evolution of the global water sector. Students and scholars interested in business and the environment, including public-private partnerships, business management and transnational corporations, and water governance, will find this book of great interest as will professionals and policymakers working in these fields.

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) have been proven to catalyze both investments, for bridging investment gaps and improving efficiencies in delivery of services. The Government of India (GOI) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), through a pioneering PPP Initiative "Mainstreaming PPPs in India," have therefore been supporting selected state PPP cells in creating an enabling environment by developing capacities, facilities, and PPP model structures for specific sectors. Improvements in urban infrastructure both for enhancing the quality of life and for increased productivity are critical. Developing mass transit solutions for the urban population is especially a crucial element of this. The Urban Development Department of the Government of Maharashtra was therefore supported under the GOI–ADB PPP Initiative for identifying and developing possible PPP structures for urban bus transport-based solutions in four selected sample cities. Assessments of national and international best practices, local circumstances, and consultations with municipal and private stakeholders have led to this PPP tool kit. The tool kit should be useful for public entities in the State of Maharashtra for developing PPP-based projects in urban bus transport and could also provide a reference point for use in other cities, across the country, for project development.

Investment in infrastructure can be a driving force of the economic recovery in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic in the context of shrinking fiscal space. Public-private partnerships (PPP) bring a promise of efficiency when carefully designed and managed, to avoid creating unnecessary fiscal risks. But fiscal illusions prevent an understanding the sources of fiscal risks, which arise in all infrastructure projects, and that in PPPs present specific characteristics that need to be addressed. PPP contracts are also affected by implicit fiscal risks when they are poorly designed, particularly when a government signs a PPP contract for a project with no financial sustainability. This paper reviews the advantages and inconveniences of PPPs, discusses the fiscal illusions affecting them, identifies a diversity of fiscal risks, and presents the essentials of PPP fiscal risk management.

This publication highlights how public–private partnerships (PPPs) can be effective to meet Asia's growing infrastructure needs. It shows how governments and their development partners can use PPPs to promote more inclusive and sustainable growth. The study finds that successful PPP projects are predicated on well-designed contracts, a stable economy, good governance and sound regulations, and a high level of institutional capacity to handle PPPs. It is the result of a collaboration between the Asian Development Bank, the Korea Development Institute, and other experts that supported the theme chapter "Sustaining Development through Public–Private Partnership" of the Asian Development Outlook 2017 Update.

Voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) and other private governance instruments (e.g., Fair Trade, Forest Stewardship Council, Fair Wear Foundation, GLOBALGAP) are increasingly regulating global production processes and economic activities. VSS verify the compliance of products or production processes with sustainability standards. The importance of voluntary sustainability standards is now widely recognized. After being operational for more than two decades, they have established themselves as private governance instruments. This recognition is also exemplified by their integration in public regulatory approaches. Governments and international organizations are partnering with voluntary sustainability standards to pursue sustainable development policies. We witness the integration of VSS in the regulatory approaches of local and national governments in countries around the world, the integration of VSS in trade policies, the emergence of public–private initiatives to govern global supply chains, and the inclusion of private initiatives in experimentalist governance regimes. This Special Issue seeks to bring together research on the interface between private and public governance. We welcome contributions which analyze specific case studies on the emergence and development of these private–public interactions, the design of public–private governance, the effectiveness of these governance arrangements, and critical perspectives on the possibilities and limitations of such public–private forms of governance. We welcome multi-disciplinary perspectives including contributions from economics, political science, law, sociology, geography, and anthropology. Papers selected for this Special Issue are subject to a peer review procedure with the aim of rapid and wide dissemination of research results, developments, and applications.

The conservation of cultural heritage requires the involvement of multiple actors from across the public, private, and nongovernmental, or third, sectors, not only to initiate and carry out conservation but also to sustain heritage places. The conservation of the historic urban environment poses specific and urgent challenges that require a multidisciplinary approach in which conservation actions are embedded within economic, social, and environmental development strategies. Increasingly, the private and third sectors are playing a pivotal role in these processes. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) are contractual arrangements in which the private and/or third sector assists in delivering a public facility or service by providing funding or operating leadership. The third sector, which may include heritage-related NGOs, as well as people living near a heritage site, is of particular relevance to PPPs used for heritage conservation. This publication focuses specifically on the use of PPPs for historic buildings and historic urban areas, and is targeted to those working in the cultural heritage sector. It draws on existing literature, which it aims to make more accessible to those interested in cultural heritage conservation. While providing information on the basic concepts of public-private partnerships and the roles and responsibilities of the partners in a PPP, this is not a guide to the use of PPPs. It discusses the types of PPPs that have been used to conserve historic buildings and historic urban areas, provides specific examples of where and how they have been used, and demonstrates ways in which PPP mechanisms have met conservation goals. This publication also makes some limited observations on the aims of PPPs drawn from the literature, from published case studies, and from a few further case study investigations. This publication draws on English-language works produced between 1992 and 2012, but concentrates on the more recent literature. Much of this material is from the Australia, the United Kingdom, and other European nations that have been the most active in conducting PPPs for heritage resources and in publishing information about these projects. This overview includes an extensive bibliography and provides some suggestions of topics for further research.