A Review of Key Criteria for Value for Money Assessment in Public Private Partnership Projects

<p dir="ltr"><i>Governments not only adopt Public Private Partnership (PPP) to leverage private sector finances but also expertise, aiming to deliver projects that are effective and foster innovation. Value for Money (VfM) remains a crucial objective in the procurement and delivery of PPP projects. While several models such as the Public Sector Comparator (PSC), Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA), Competitive Bidding and Outline Business Case (OBC) are commonly used to evaluate VfM, the robustness in the assessment process lies in the application of comprehensive and context specific criteria. Thus, the aim of this paper is to examine the key criteria for VfM assessment in PPP projects. This study reviews seven key criteria for assessing VfM in PPP infrastructure projects: cost efficiency, risk allocation and management, service quality, innovation and expertise, sustainability, flexibility and adaptability, and transparency and accountability. Through a review of literature, this paper provides insights to guide policymakers and practitioners in assessing VfM in a holistic manner. Furthermore, it will lead to the development of hybrid models that incorporate qualitative factors to the existing VfM assessment models.</i></p>