ONE hand can’t clap, said Finance Minister Dr Peter Phillips, in making the case for strongly pursuing public-private partnerships (PPP) in Jamaica.

However, the approach cannot be successful without the complete support of all involved, both the public and private sectors, Phillips warned.

The partnerships will ensure that critical services are being delivered to people, Phillips said of the arrangement which sees infrastructural development, often associated with government, being undertaken by private organisations.

PPPs are even more important “when our fiscal accounts are so challenged, given the need to pay down the debt without impeding the progress to our development and the modernisation of our infrastructure”, the minister said.

He was speaking at a seminar put on by Scotia Investments and PricewaterhouseCoopers last week.

Such arrangements relieve the government of the burden of large capital expenditure, he said, while allowing for better handling of problems that would come up, such as project selection, ineffective planning, implementation and inadequate spending on maintenance.

This strategy works well as the private sector is used to reach government targets but using their expertise in key areas to do so, Phillips said, adding that it coincides with aspects of the national growth strategy which includes transferring entities that could be better managed with private sector resources.

“We have a number of PPPs already in place but without any formal policy”, he said. That policy is being worked on and will result in greater levels of confidence to attract investors.

Currently, the Development Bank of Jamaica, through a PPP unit, will consult with all ministries and other government agencies to get a list of possible PPP projects that cover all sectors of the economy.

Any projects chosen will have to transfer risk from the government, achieve value for money through improved services to the public and be transparent, said the minister, insisting that Jamaicans must be informed about them at all times.