Following are the principles or criterion which a partnership has to fulfil to qualify as a PPP or PSPP.
1. Openness and Binding Commitment: Disclosure to partners of all relevant information and strict adherence to the important principles of cooperation. This strict adherence is usually made possible in the presence of a formal agreement between the partners. Others factors like resources put into the partnership and agreed upon goals and shared functions should also be known fully to all the partners.
2.Supervision/Control: Continuous monitoring and observation allows important lessons to be learnt from the partnership and also provide a good mechanism for collecting and analysing the feedback.
3.Successful Negotiation Process: The partnership is a strategic community of responsibility and action set up for the mid to long term, in which the partners contribute their respective inputs into the shared process of producing products and/or services. The process of decisionmaking by negotiation is done together, so that in the process of decision-making no-one is disadvantaged but rather, disadvantages are reduced. For the risks, the planned input and the expected profits, an efficient exchange process must be agreed. Every participant fulfils the role that is assigned to him or her within the partnership. The equality of the roles is not essential, as long as the partners in their assigned roles have equal rights.
4. Equal Rights in Different Roles: It is not necessary for the agreed roles of the partners to be equal but it is necessary for them to have equal rights in their respective roles.
5.Clear Division of Tasks, Roles and Functions: The assignment of tasks and responsibilities is done according to the actual capabilities and expertise of the partners.
6. Clear Goals and Objectives: Clear goals and objectives have to be decided mutually by the partners.
7. Mutual Trust: Especially in the area of “core services” (social services whose qualitative performance is not easy to measure), mutual trust between the partners contributes a lot to the successful implementation of the partnership.
8.Sympathy between the Partners: Experience shows that when the “chemistry” between the partners is good, the setting-up and running of the partnership is smooth and more productive.
9.Creation of Synergy between Partners: In negotiation processes, specific resources of the partners are brought together in such a way that usable synergy effects are generated. The focus is on achieving goals negotiated together, with which each partner can identify
themselves. Thus synergy effects are made available to the partners, which would not have come about without the partnership.
10.Suitability of the Resources and Size of the Partnership: Resources for the partnership (human resources) must be adequate for the size of the partnership. Sufficient time resources must be planned for the partnership.
11. Risk Sharing: Sharing of risks and profits need to be made clear in the agreement and then strictly adhered to during the whole duration of the partnership.
12. Active involvement of the public sector throughout the project and also in the follow up stages
13.Political leadership: Active support from the political leaders is required in encouraging the two partners to share responsibilities, risks and rewards.
14.Secure public control: In case the private partner defaults or fails to fulfil its obligation, the government should ensure that it has recourse rights to maximize the opportunity to resolve the issue or to take control.
15.Limited complexity: The arrangement should be kept simple, workable and free of complexity and confusion.
16. Legal authority: In the form of legislations and law making to encourage and protect PPP formation.
17.Specific Needs: Each partner must have a specific reason for joining a partnership, i.e. a specific need which can be fulfilled through the partnership
