A Study on legal and regulatory framework for entertaining unsolicited proposals to successfully implement PPPS in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Governments around the world have sought to involve the private sector in the delivery of public services that have customarily been within the public authorities’ domain through alternatives. Public Private Partnership is one of such alternatives. In practice, Public Private Partnership initiatives can be initiated through either solicited or unsolicited approaches, and in recent years, the adoption of unsolicited Public Private Partnership has grown significantly in both developing and developed countries, as it harnesses the unique ideas and innovations of the private sector. The absence of a strong legal and regulatory framework has been identified as a major challenge to unsolicited Public Private Partnerships worldwide, including in Sri Lanka. Thus, this study aims to establish a legal and regulatory system to streamline unsolicited Public Private Partnerships in Sri Lanka. The study commenced with a comprehensive literature review to synthesise current knowledge within the research area and to define the research problem. Furthermore, the process of unsolicited Public Private Partnership was identified, and a theoretical grounds pertaining to unsolicited Public Private Partnership were identified. Subsequently, from an interpretivist philosophical perspective and adopting an abductive research approach, the data was collected through desk research review and semi-structured interviews conducted in four rounds of Delphi surveys. The data analysis carried out using content analysis, with cognitive mapping employed to depict the issues, recommendations, and reforms proposed by respondents during the Delphi survey. Finally, reformed framework was developed to streamline existing legal and regulatory framework of unsolicited Public Private Partnership framework. The developed framework provides comprehensive guidance for both private and public sector organisations concerning the formal procedures for unsolicited Public Private Partnership and the relevant regulatory authorities, from initiation through to award. The enhanced framework removed institutional barriers, allowing the private proponent to submit a proposal that satisfied the requirements of government agencies