Tactical Conflict Prevention Strategies in Public-Private Partnerships: Lessons from Experts

Abstract

Conflicts are frequent in public–private partnerships (PPP) due to the involvement of multidisciplined parties within the process.Individual parties among the numerous stakeholders often work toward achieving their own desired goals. Early identification andelimination of potential conflicts are significant to achieving a smooth delivery process of PPP projects. PPP offers imperative benefitsfor economic development, especially in developing countries. However, despite the huge potentials of PPP in infrastructure develop-ment, limited attention still exists in the early stage on the prevention of conflict. Aside from that, a more focused investigation is requiredacross different locations. Therefore, this study aims to enhance the understanding of conflict occurrenceand articulate steps to conflictprevention in PPPs through preconstruction stage practices. Expert interviews were carried out in two phases. Phase I identified thecurrent process and triggers of conflicts and Phase 2 identified thestrategies, and recommendationsto eliminate the conflicts. Thepurposive sampling method was used for the selection of experts in Sri Lanka and findings were analyzed using the content analysismethod. This study identified and categorized the triggers of conflicts in PPP as political interference and public interruption, lack ofknowledge about PPP, contractual agreement,and commitment of professionals. Further, the strategies to prevent conflicts werediscussed under key headings such as proper professional practice, use of lessons learned, thorough contract drafting, a well-defined program,precontract practices, project-long audits, awareness programs, and government support.DOI:10.1061/JLADAH.LADR-996.© 2023American Society of Civil Engineers