Exploring Modalities Best Suited for Public Private Partnership Concession Agreements in the Education Sector of Zambia

Abstract

The Zambian public sector has been known to face several challenges in the provision of infrastructure among others education infrastructure. Thus, the introduction of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). In as much as the education sector of Zambia can benefit tremendously from the PPP initiative, poorly designed PPP concession agreements risk worsening existing educational sector challenges. The objectives of the paper were to establish the extent of application of PPPs in the Zambian education sector, identify the challenges surrounding concession agreements in PPPs in Zambia, and suggest the right modalities that could be applied to PPP concession agreements in the Zambian education sector. Both secondary and primary data was collected to establish that no private sector entity has had or is currently engaged in an ongoing concession with the Government in the procurement of infrastructure for schools. Challenges surrounding concession agreements in PPPs included contract misspecifications, lack of contractual flexibility, opportunistic behaviour by either party, and shielded concession agreement creation and process. In view of the foregoing, right modalities that could be applied to PPP concession agreements in the Zambian education sector include proper risk allocation, adequate concession period, clear allocation of roles and responsibilities, and inclusion of stabilization clauses.