A call for public-private partnership

Tifa Asrianti , The Jakarta Post , Singapore | Wed, 07/02/2008 10:52 AM | City

With sustainable development challenges ahead, public and private partnership (PPP) plays an important role in creating vibrant and liveable cities, experts and officials say.

Hiroshi Nakada, mayor of Yokohama, Japan, said his administration had agreed on 198 disaster prevention measures. Of those, 158 agreements were made with the private sector and the cooperative association.

"We have disasters, such as earthquakes, typhoons and tsunamis. It would be almost impossible for the city to cater to the needs of residents in the middle of the disaster. Public and private partnership plays an important role," he said at the World Cities Summit last week.

One agreement was that convenience stores would provide toilet facilities to victims if a disaster occurred.

"We also train all citizens, including foreigners, living in areas susceptible to disasters so they can help each other during emergency situations," he said.

Nakada said to reduce garbage by 40 percent, his administration involved communities in sorting the garbage. He said Yokohama put types of garbage into 15 categories, such as plastic and paper.

"If members of communities sort their garbage correctly, it will help officers pick it up and expedite the recycling process. Educating citizens is not easy. It's time-consuming, but the results are worth the effort," he said.

Nakada said energy efficiency had become an issue in his country. To help reduce energy cost, his administration set air-conditioners to 28 degrees Celsius in offices and worked in casual summer wear, without ties or blazer suits.

Abdullah Al Ali Al-Nuaim, president of the Arab Urban Development Institute (AUDI) and former mayor of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said collaboration between the public and private sector could take various forms and methods, from providing specific services to the public sector to managing state-owned bodies.

"The private sector might provide building, operating and transfer services. Another move is the total privatization of some public utilities," Al-Nuaim said.

He said the obstacles found in the PPP could be handled by issuing rules, regulations and legislation that encouraged partnership, as well as decentralizing power to enable municipalities to enjoy more authority.

Chong Siak Ching, president and CEO of Ascendas, said PPP could work if governments tested master plans and set up an application process for private enterprises to take part.

"There should be a clear master plan and framework about which sectors can play a part in the PPP," Chong said.

Max Pohan, deputy minister for Regional Development and Local Autonomy Affairs at the National Development Planning Board, said the concept of PPP was not new as Indonesia had an existing national policy that required development equilibrium in all regions.

"All local administrations should be able to create new economic hubs so people no longer see Jakarta as the main destination to find a job. All mayors and governors should have a master plan, ability and creativity," he said.

Assistant to city secretary for development Sarwo Handayani said there should be a win-win solution for the PPP. If one side cannot meet the requirements, the requirements should be reviewed, she said.

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