Perspective of critical factors toward successful public-private partnerships for emerging economies

Berisha, Anisa; Kruja, Alba Demneri; Hysa, Eglantina Article Perspective of critical factors toward successful publicprivate partnerships for emerging economies Administrative Sciences Provided in Cooperation with: MDPI – Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, Basel Suggested Citation: Berisha, Anisa; Kruja, Alba Demneri; Hysa, Eglantina (2022) : Perspective of critical factors toward successful public-private partnerships for emerging economies, Administrative Sciences, ISSN 2076-3387, MDPI, Basel, Vol. 12, Iss. 4, pp. 1-20, https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci12040160 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/275430 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your personal and scholarly purposes. You are not to copy documents for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Citation: Berisha, Anisa, Alba Kruja, and Eglantina Hysa. 2022. Perspective of Critical Factors toward Successful Public–Private Partnerships for Emerging Economies. Administrative Sciences 12: 160. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/admsci12040160 Received: 29 September 2022 Accepted: 8 November 2022 Published: 11 November 2022 Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). administrative sciences Article Perspective of Critical Factors toward Successful Public–Private Partnerships for Emerging Economies Anisa Berisha 1, Alba Kruja 1and Eglantina Hysa 2,* 1Department of Business Administration, Epoka University, 1032 Tirana, Albania 2Department of Economics, Epoka University, 1032 Tirana, Albania *Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: In the last decades, Albania has started the implementation of a new practice which is partnership with the private sector, named public–private partnership (PPP), due to the inabilities of the public sector to fulfill all its public needs. This represents a crucial ratio related to economic development and the struggle for a fair and transparent implementation process. Critical success factors (CSF) are the significant elements in the partnership which, if properly identified, provide success in implementation. For this reason, the purpose of this study is to highlight the factors which increase the chances of a successful implementation of PPPs in Albania and the items which contribute to each factor. The data used for the analysis were gained through 175 surveys conducted with people working in private and public institutions engaged in PPP. Of the main CSFs, the identification of the right project is ranked most critical to the success of PPP followed by financial capacity, trust, openness and fairness between parties, negotiation and defined revenue stream. The study findings further suggest that the accountability mechanism should be enforced in order for the public sector to act in accordance with the public interest. It is concluded that the findings of the study will guide the PPP stakeholders on the CSFs of PPPs in Albania. Keywords: public–private partnership; critical success factors; sustainability management; Albania; factor analysis 1. Introduction Albania is a developing country which has joined the market-based economy since 1992, with the fall of the communist system. Nowadays, Albania is struggling to be a more democratic and developed country but it is still in the transitional phase. Those problems are considered by international authorities as criteria to be fulfilled for the accession to the European Union (EU) as well. Such criteria include enforcement of the rule of law, the strengthening of fundamental rights and governance, judicial reform and the fight against corruption and organized crime, along with reform in public administration (Ahmeti and Kruja 2020;Asllani et al. 2014;Bitzenis and Nito 2005;Feruni and Hysa 2020;Kruja 2020a, 2020b;Kruja and Berisha 2021;Hysa and Mansi 2021;Rinkel et al. 2016;Plaku and Hysa 2019;Xheneti and Smallbone 2008;Khan et al. 2021). One of the most discussed issues by the public and media is the practice of public– private partnership (PPP). The government of developed and developing countries are increasingly using PPPs to deliver services that public entities are unable to provide for the general public (Dobrowolski 2021;Manta et al. 2022). Since Albania is a country in transition, identification of the factors which can provide the success of the PPPs in Albania is crucial for effective practice, considering that there is no documented evidence on the success level of PPP in Albania. The implementation of such a type of partnership helps the country to progress in areas where the public sector is unable to provide without the financial or technical support of the private sector (Dobrowolski et al. 2015). This means that through the partnership, Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci12040160 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/admsci Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 2 of 20 more access is provided to resources such as technical, human, financial resources, etc. Furthermore, it provides more mechanisms to enable each sector to achieve common goals in a more effective and legitimate way. In the other hand, it requires a strong relation among the sectors, based on transparency, openness and trust for the interest of the general public (Maione et al. 2021;Manta et al. 2021;Hysa et al. 2020). The parties involved in the partnership must be considered to work towards the same objectives, and their priorities should be in balance with each other. This study aims to investigate what factors are critical to the successful implementation of PPP in the economy of Albania. Based in the existing literature, there are very few studies which have elaborated this topic, so the identified checklist of CSFs for PPPs can be adopted for further studies by providing the context of a developing country. The highlight of this paper is that it contributes not only to the Albanian literature of PPPs which is scarce and would effectively help the PPPs stakeholders, but also helps other countries as well. Albania is in an accession negotiation process with the European Union (EU), so the findings can be helpful in enhancing future implementations for countries which aspire to be part of the EU, so this is an important aspect of the differentiation with the existing literature. Given this, the objectives of this study are: - What are the critical success factors of PPP in Albania? - What is the relation between the factors and the success of PPP? The reminder of the paper is organized as follows: Section 2provides an overview of the studies conducted in this topic while making a comparison of different countries, including the reason an Albanian version would add value to the current literature. Section 3 describes the research methodology and the model of collected data. Section 4is a detailed discussion and analysis of results, followed by the conclusion at the end. 2. Literature Review 2.1. Public–Private Partnership There are a wide range of PPPs which have diverse features and include a variety of activities. However, there is no common definition, and this concept sometimes creates a confusion in regard with what this partnership involves. Generally, PPPs are based on a mutual commitment to working towards shared objectives through sharing the risks and the responsibilities between public and private entities (Hoon et al. 2009). However, in another definition, the partnership involves at least one private for-profit organization working with at least one not-for-profit organization (NGO) aiming particularly to help a disadvantaged population (Reich 2000). In other words, resources are shared between the entities with the purpose of helping the population or the target market and a contract is signed between them. Moreover, the arrangement between the two entities can be shaped in many forms and can incorporate the following features: The public entity transfers some facilities controlled by it such as land and property to private sector (with or without payment in return). The private entity usually builds, extends or renovates a facility. The private sector provides the service by using the facility for a defined period of time (Grimsey and Lewis 2007). From the various definitions of PPPs, it can be concluded that the partnership between the public and private entities is very beneficial to provide services to the general population and/or the target market. However, this partnership can have positive and negative impacts as well. Some of the advantages in the execution of PPP strategy identified by Parvu and Voicu-Olteanu (2009) include (1) transfer of the risk; (2) greater efficiency of the government budget; and (3) quicker execution of the project. However, there are also some drawbacks which can be considered as risks, such as: (1) PPP has many political exposures; (2) increased cost of transaction; and (3) corruption/private profit (Parvu and Voicu-Olteanu 2009). Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 3 of 20 Generally, it can be argued that PPPs are a very important feature for development, considering that this method is practiced in many countries. 2.2. Critical Success Factors of Public-Private Partnership Building a successful PPP depends on the microeconomic and macroeconomic conditions of the state. Based on the macroeconomic perspective, the political situation is a very significant element since without a favorable political climate for profitable activities, the partnerships cannot be created. The economic indicator is considered as very influential as well (Tomja 2016). Furthermore, there are some other factors which affect the relationship, if they are well implemented, that can be considered as the critical success factors of the partnership. The concept of CSF is firstly introduced by Rockart (1982, p. 85) as “the limited number of areas in which results, if they are satisfactory, will ensure successful competitive performance for the organisation”. Critical success elements are very important for the firms/organizations because they enable identification of the key factors that should be focused on, in order to be successful (Rowlinson 1999). There are two types of literatures in regard with the CSFs of PPP: (1) studies focused on the CSF of PPP in general; and (2) studies examining the CSF of a specific PPP project. Despite the unique characteristics of individual projects, there are some critical points which every partnership should have to succeed such as: the existence of potential for synergy between partners; the need for the representatives of the partners in the partnership to have sufficient delegated decision-making powers; ensuring partners’ procedures, systems and equipment are compatible; sufficient social capital and/or sufficient time to build social capital; financial capacity; stable political leadership; inter-departmental cooperation, etc. It should be emphasized that the factors determining the success of the partnership depend on the type of the partners involved. In the case that the partnership is between a business entity and a political institution such as municipality, then the factors are mainly political, and the general perspective is based on politics as well. In case the partners are the civil society and the business, then the prevailing factor is the social one (Minnie 2011). Generally, the National Council for Public–Private Partnership considers seven important factors as the key to success for a PPP, including: (1) public sector champion; (2) statutory environment (including rules and regulations for structuring and leading the partnership); (3) the public sector’s organized structure; (4) a business plan; (5) defined revenue stream; (6) stakeholder support; and (7) choosing the partner carefully (NCPPP 2017). Other authors, such as Tiong and Alum (1997), have identified some crucial factors as well, which tend to focus mostly on the CSF needed to win a PPP contract. More concretely, ‘the identification of the right project’, ‘the consortium’s strength’, ‘the differentiation of financial package, for example a stronger financial commitment by the government,’ and ‘the support to community’ are considered as the main elements which should be implemented/respected for a successful PPP. However, the evaluation of the success factors depends on the sector in which the partnership is conducted which may include: the infrastructure, the energy, the economy, etc. In respect of specific case studies, different authors have researched certain issues. In Australia, a stadiums are built using the BOOT (build, own, operate, transfer) type of PPP where the private organization conducts a big project’s implementation under the contract of a public sector agency. The authors Jefferies et al. (2002) have identified some CSF as the key point of the progress of the partnership, including: compatibility skills among the key parties, technical innovation in overcoming project complexity, environmental impact, legal/economic framework, political stability, selecting the right project, existing strategic alliances, good resource management, trust, community support, feasibility study, transfer of technology, financial capability and consortium structure (Jefferies et al. 2002). In the case of Sydney Super Dome PPP, the author Jefferies (2006) identified the same CSF examined at Jefferies et al. (2002), by adding new factors too, as the project is in a different type and sector. Some of the other CSFs include negotiation, bid feature, business viability, competition, credit rating investor, existing infrastructure, delivery of asset, project Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 4 of 20 identification, etc. In the case of Sydney, the issue of bidding is considered as the most important factor, managed successfully by the government as well as the negotiation process which is significant for the good maintenance of the relationship (Jefferies 2006). The CSFs in the PPP of construction sector are evaluated in the case of Kuwait by specifying the following key factors as the most important ones: the procurement should be effective, with a government guarantee, economic conditions should be favorable, an available financial market should exist and the implementation of project should be efficient (Helmy 2011). Based on the findings of a case study, some of the CSFs for a successful PPP include trust, openness and fairness (Jamali 2004). There are authors who are focused in finding the most important CSFs by dividing them in sub-items which constitute a certain factor. Hardcastle et al. (2005) has identified five CSFs which are: effective procurement, project implementability, government guarantee, favorable economic conditions and available financial market. A summary of studies conducted in different countries of CSF of PPP and their findings is presented in Table 1below. Table 1. Literature Review Summary. Author/s Country Sample Surveyed Type of PPP Methodology Critical Success Factors of PPP Tiong and Alum (1997) AsiaPacific region BOT practitioners Concession BOT contract →Use of surveys; →Quantitative study. Analysis: Descriptive analysis. - The identification of the right project; - The consortium’s strength; - The differentiation of financial package; - The support to community. Jefferies et al. (2002) Australia NA Concession BOOT contract →Use of interviews and literature; →Qualitative study. Analysis: single case study method. - Compatibility skills among the key parties; - Technical innovation in overcoming project complexity; - Environmental impact, legal /economic framework; - Political stability; - Selecting the right project; - Existing strategic alliances; - Good resource management and trust; - Community support; - Transfer of technology; - Financial capability and consortium structure. Jamali (2004)Lebanon NA Concession BOT contract →Use of documentation, archival records, interviews and quantitative assessment; →Quantitative and qualitative study. Analysis: quantitative comparative assessment. - Trust; - Openness; - Fairness. Hardcastle et al. (2005) UK Directors and managers working in public and private sector’s organizations General PPPs No specification →Use of surveys; →Quantitative study. Analysis: Descriptive analysis, reliability tests using Cronbach’s alpha, One-Way Analysis of Variance and Factor Analysis. Effective procurement; Project implementability; Government guarantee; Favorable economic conditions Available financial market. Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 5 of 20 Table 1. Cont. Author/s Country Sample Surveyed Type of PPP Methodology Critical Success Factors of PPP Minnie (2011) South Africa Public service entities and private service entities Concessions →Use of interviews, the analysis of case studies, surveys and the use of informants; →Quantitative and qualitative study. Analysis: Descriptive statistics such as frequency distribution, mean, and standard deviation. - Independent sample t-test. - The existence of potential for synergy between partners; - The representatives of the partners in the partnership have sufficient delegated decision-making powers; - Partners’ procedures, systems and equipment are compatible; - Sufficient social capital and/or sufficient time to build social capital; - Financial capacity; - Stable political leadership; - Inter-departmental cooperation, etc. Helmy (2011)Kuwait Kuwaiti middle and low-income citizens who would be eligible for the welfare housing units from the government. Concession BOT contract →Use of interviews and questionnaires; →Qualitative and quantitative study. Analysis: Factor analysis. - Effective procurement; - Government guarantee; - Favorable economic conditions; - Available financial market; - Project implementability. Ismail and Ajija (2013) Malaysia Participants of the national seminar on Malaysian PPP framework General PPPs No specification →Use of surveys; →Quantitative study. Analysis: independent sample t-test and mean score (by SPSS). Good governance; Commitment and responsibility of public and private sectors; Favorable legal framework; Sound economic policy; Available financial market; Strong and good private consortium; Stable macro-economic condition; Project technical feasibility; Transparency of procurement process; Appropriate risk allocation and risk sharing; Thorough and realistic assessment of the cost and benefits; Well-organized and committed public agency Multi-benefit objectives; Competitive procurement process Social support; Shared authority between public and private sectors; Government involvement by providing guarantee; Political support. Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 6 of 20 Table 1. Cont. Author/s Country Sample Surveyed Type of PPP Methodology Critical Success Factors of PPP Sanni (2016)Nigeria Survey: Participants who have played key roles in the implementation of PPP projects from public and private sectors. Interviews: experts on PPP projects General PPPs No specification →Use of questionnaires and interviews; →Quantitative and qualitative study. Analysis: Cronbach’s alpha, exploratory factor analysis, Bartlett’s test of sphericity, Kaiser-MeyerOlkin Measure (KMO), Measures of Sampling Adequacy (MSA) and factor extraction. Stable macro-economic conditions; Commitment and responsibility of public/private sectors; Available financial market; Strong private consortium; Repayment of the debt; Sound financial package; Strong political support; Delivering publicly needed service; Short construction period; Economic viability of the project; Innovation in the financial methods of consortium; Favorable legal framework. The above-mentioned countries differ from each other, however as it can be noticed almost all of them have used a mix of quantitative and qualitative study while most of the focus has been to the general type of PPP and in some cases to the concessions and BOOT type of PPP. If we compare the identified CSFs of PPP for each country, there are many differences in the ranking process. For example, the UK is a developed country, which is why, according to the authors, the political support as CSF lies outside this group and is more relevant for the developing countries. This element is noticed in Nigeria and South Africa where the political support is crucial for the success of PPPs, considering their current political and financial position. In the case of Australia, the study shows that both government and private industry are strongly attempting to meet Australia’s need for infrastructure in the new millennium; that is why the first factor for a successful partnership and tangible results is considered to be the compatibility of skills between public and private entities. This means that the focus of Australia including the general working culture, where the private sector works jointly with the public entities to achieve the common objectives, is different from the other countries. In the other hand, in Malaysian PPP projects, the authors have identified the problem of trust and coordination deficit in the governmental level. For this reason, the success of the PPP projects relies on good governance, where the performance of both public and private sector is an essential factor. In general terms, the identified factors in each state depend on their current phase of development and the focused sector in that period of time. In the case of Albania, Spahiu (2020) in his study considers PPP with respect to the legislation aspect. As such, the Albanian legislation considers PPP as a form of long-term cooperation, regulated by a bilateral contract, between the contracting authority and one or more economic operators, where the private partner assumes the obligation to provide public services within the scope of the public partner’s competencies, undertaking different levels and extent of risks, while having the right to be rewarded, in accordance with the contract (Spahiu 2020). As a follow-up of the established legal framework in 2006, Albania has seen an increased number of PPP projects, mainly in the field of energy and transport (Keçi 2020). Studies have revealed a high mortality rate of PPPs in the Western Balkans, especially during preparation phases (WBIF and EPEC 2018). Furthermore, the study of Keçi (2020) presents a SWOT analysis of the PPP developments in the Western Balkans, and especially in Albania. According to this study, it was found that decisions to use PPP deliveries are mainly based on national strategies. In addition, neither documentary Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 7 of 20 evidence assessing the sustainability of a specific project delivered through PPP, nor a specific regulation was found. Another study in this regard is found for the energy sector, and the use of PPPs, for which PPPs have been widely used (Nasto and Sulillari 2021). Even though there are several studies that have examined the CSFs of PPP projects, there is a gap regarding studies on Albania that identify the factors which contribute to the successful implementation of PPPs This study highlights the specific items contributing to each factor. To our knowledge, this is the first study in the literature offering information on such context for a country such as Albania. In addition to the theoretical implications, this study also brings out some practical implications for policymakers, private enterprises and researchers. 3. Methodology This study is based on the quantitative data taken from the results of the conducted survey. In order to match the aims and objectives of this research with the sample of respondents, purposive sampling is applied. Amongst the respondents were people working in the public and private sector and/or who has previously worked in the PPPs contracts. The selection of the companies in the private sector and entities in the public sector has been done based on the importance and the impact they have had in the public and the social media, as the most discussed ones. Data from 175 people working in the private sector (companies) and public sector (municipalities and ministries) all over Albania were collected during March–June 2018. It should be emphasized that the number of people working in the public sector is smaller than in the private one because the people working in the public sector in a certain institution, such as a ministry, are responsible for all the concessions occurring within that. Consequently, the number of people working in the concessionaire contracts in the private sector is bigger as there are different projects linked with just one institution. The survey that is used is based on the structure of Zhang’s (2005) survey, but the questions are formulated by the researchers, taking in account the objectives that are aimed to be achieved for the case of Albania. The survey is divided into two parts in which the first part consists of nine standardized demographic questions of the surveyed people such as where they work, the position they hold, how many years do they have working in a PPP project and the general information in regard of what they think for the CSFs and mistakes conducted in the implementation of PPPs. The second part of the questionnaire is a table with all the CSFs discovered in the literature based on the study of Zhang, 2005 (Critical Success Factors for Public–Private Partnerships in Infrastructure Development), in which the surveyed people are required to evaluate them based on the importance that each factor has, according to their opinion, on a Likert Scale from 1—Not important at all to 5—Absolutely essential. Exploratory factor analysis technique is implemented for the data collected to identify and evaluate the factors which are critical in the success of PPPs implementation in Albania. The definition of items are found in other studies of the literature and are recapitulated at Table 2, with the respective definition of each item, adding to Zhang’s (2005) study. Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 8 of 20 Table 2. Study Survey Items. Item Definition Author (Year) Negotiation Through the right negotiation in the procurement process it is possible, under the new public procurement directive, to ensure that the private party will be responsible for the funding, design, completion, implementation, service and maintenance, providing the incentive to build to reduce the life-time cost of service and maintenance. (Jefferies 2006) Trust, openness and fairness between parties “Partnering should be mutually viewed as representing an opportunity rather than a threat and loss of control. In this context, while recognizing the immense complexities in working across sectors with different strategic and operational realities, the focus should be on identifying common goals, delineating responsibilities, negotiating expectations, and building bridges including common working practices and specific reporting and record keeping requirements”. (Jamali 2004) Sufficient social capital and/or sufficient time to build social capital “Sufficient social capital to accommodate the social capital requirements of the partnership and/or sufficient time to build social capital”. (Minnie 2011) Financial capacity “Financial capacities to ensure strong financial base and reliable partner, and municipal attitudes”. (Minnie 2011) Stable political leadership “The simplest definition of a stable political system is one that survives through crises without internal warfare”. (Minnie 2011) Statutory environment “Statutory authority and regulations—Necessary for enforcement of the contract”. (NCPPP 2017) Public sector’s organized structure Need for good governance •To assure an open and fair procurement process; •Consolidate staff = easier to monitor; •Independent authority (domestic/internal or international). (NCPPP 2017) Stakeholder support “All impacted parties End Users Competing Interests”. (NCPPP 2017) Environmental impact, legal /economic framework A PPP legal framework is identified in laws and regulations, but also in policy documents, guidance notes and in the design of PPP contracts. The exact nature of the legal and regulatory framework applicable to a particular PPP transaction, also depends on the financing mechanisms contemplated and the scope of responsibilities transferred to the PPP company. (Jefferies et al. 2002) Existing strategic alliances This experience or network is viewed favorably. A local partner in an international BOOT contributes greatly towards success. Experience viewed in terms of country (previous host). (Jefferies et al. 2002) Community support Social groups of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage. (Tiong and Alum 1997) Existing infrastructure Contracts for the procurement of services or management of existing infrastructure can be divided into two categories. • “At-risk” long-term management or service contracts that can be regarded as PPPs (these are service PPPs, not DBFOM contracts); •Contracts that are regarded as conventional O&M or service contracts. (Jefferies 2006) Defined revenue stream “Funds to Cover the Long-Term Financing •Tolls/Fees (real or shadow) •TIF or other form of a Tax District; •Long-Term Maintenance Contracts; •Availability Payments; •Concession Model (limited application)”. (NCPPP 2017) Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 15 of 20 by them. It may happen that for certain projects there may be refusal or objection that may result in violent acts that may affect not only the implementation of the project but may also have financial consequences for which the government should respond. The risk of unauthorized access to project areas where concessions/PPPs are provided is always taken by the government and as such, if they occur, the financial costs that may come as a result will be borne by the government. To avoid concretizing this risk, the government should consult with the public in advance. According to international experiences, public non-disclosure has even led to the total failure of the projects, causing a significant amount of money to be paid by the state. 6. Conclusions The main aim of this study was to find the CSFs for the implementation of PPPs in Albania, based on the items which are found in the literature. As the items are grouped in six factors, by factor analysis, five items are not included because they are considered as inappropriate in the case of Albania. PPPs in Albania are a new tactic to meet the needs of the general public, due to the inability of the public sector to do so. In theory, the main target of the PPP would be the interests of the civil society however, throughout this research, other findings have been exposed. Appendix Acompares the top five items of different countries in a study conducted by Cheung et al. (2012) by including Albania as a way of comparing the identified CSFs. Generally, the results show many differences in the rankings of the CSFs for PPP implementation, as perceived by the respondents in different countries but it is noticed that in developed countries all the factors are almost the same. In Albania, there are different results which demonstrate the difference that a developing Western Balkan country has compared with other states. The first factor is the identification of the right project which shows the necessity of the country for a transparent and fair process of project implementability. Based on the results, as is mentioned above, there is no focus on the immediate needs of the country which might be identified through a needs assessment. In Albania, the number of needs assessment is relatively limited while the quality is relatively low. According to public data, the number of concession companies is expected to increase, as in the next 15 years (2019–2032), the government is engaged in PPP projects and will have to pay a total of EUR 2 billion, from the money collected from taxpayers. In the other hand, there is a lack of a cost–benefit analysis and risk sharing to better understand if the choice of giving many services by concession is the best alternative for our state (MONITOR 2019). This is also one of the reasons why the identification of the right project for PPPs is considered to be the first factor when considering the public concern regarding the high number of services given with concession to the private sector by the government. The second item is the financial capacity considering that Albania is a developing country and lacks financial resources. In the other states, irrespective of geographical location, the focus of the items is more concentrated in the transfer of risk and risk allocation, commitment of public–private sector responsibilities, and strong and effective private consortiums. These countries do not have such a tendency for mistrust with regards to the partnership. However, other differences can be noticed. Countries such as Australia and the UK have an established stable macro-economic environment, so the market is more predictable, while China is more unstable and still adjusting to changes from the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, so this is a significant reason why these three countries have differences among them. In the other hand, a developing country such as Albania associates the success of the partnership with financial capability, as a high financial risk would cost more to the Albanian citizens. For example, if the concession payments exceed the limit of five per cent of the actual tax revenue of the previous year, then the government would have to take Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 16 of 20 measures to correct the revenue, and an alternative that would bring money to the budget faster is a tax increase, burdening the citizens. It means that Albania is in a critical situation regarding the high number of concession contracts given by the government and its financial capability to successfully implement such practice. An important element is the analysis of the projects and how many of them are really a priority and appropriate for funding under the PPP modality which is also one of the main concerns found in this study. For this reason, it is very important to ensure that the public interest is protected. PPP arrangements should not only be for the sake of undertaking a PPP project. The degree of private involvement should be carefully analyzed and accountability should be enforced; therefore an alternative might be the creation of independent association acting as ‘watchdogs’. The other following factors, trust, openness and fairness, negotiation and a defined revenue stream are closely linked with the fact that the partnership between the private and public entities is perceived with skepticism by the general public and mostly considered as based on corruption. In general, the findings obtained in this study can provide an overview of CSFs for projects with PPP schemes in the future for developing countries such as Albania and help stakeholders increase the likelihood of PPP project success. Author Contributions: Conceptualization, A.B. and A.K.; methodology, A.B. and A.K.; validation, A.B., A.K. and E.H.; formal analysis, A.B. and A.K.; investigation, A.B., A.K. and E.H.; resources, A.B. and A.K.; writing—original draft preparation, A.B. and A.K.; writing—review and editing, A.B., A.K. and E.H.; supervision, A.K.; project administration, A.K. and E.H.; funding acquisition E.H. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. Funding: This research received no external funding. Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable. Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable. Data Availability Statement: Not applicable. Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest. Appendix A. Comparison between Countries Concerning the Top Five Items for PPP Implementation No. Top Five Items for Albania Top Five Items for Different Countries (Cheung et al. 2012) China (Hong Kong) Australia UK 1 The identification of the right project Favorable legal framework Commitment and responsibility of public and private sectors Strong and good private consortium 2 Financial capacity Commitment and responsibility of public and private sectors Appropriate risk allocation and risk sharing Appropriate risk allocation and risk sharing 3Trust, openness and fairness between parties Strong and good private consortium Strong and good private consortium Available financial market 4 Negotiation Stable macro-economic condition Good governance Commitment and responsibility of public and private sectors 5 Defined revenue stream Appropriate risk allocation and risk sharing Project technical feasibility Thorough and realistic assessment of the costs and benefits Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 17 of 20 Appendix B. Questionnaire 1. Please specify in which sector do you currently work? (a) Public Sector (b) Private Sector 2. What position do you hold in the institution? (a) Executive director (b) Head of department (c) Representative of investors (d) Manager (e) Other (please specify) _______________________________ 3. How do you perceive the necessity of Albanian economy for partnership with private sector? (a) Not at all important (b) Low importance (c) Neutral (d) Moderately Important (e) Extremely important 4. How many years do you have working in a PPP project? (a) 1–3 years (b) 3–6 years (c) 6–9 years (d) +10 years 5. In how many PPP project did you work? (a) 1–3 projects (b) 3–5 projects (c) 5–7 projects (d) +8 projects 6. Which type of PPP project did you work? (a) Service contract (b) Managerial contract (c) Lease (d) Concession (e) Other (please specify) _________________________ 7. How do you consider the influence of the public opinion in the PPP? (a) No affect (b) Minor affect (c) Neutral (d) Moderate affect (e) Major affect 8. Does your institution have an in-house guidance for PPP? (a) Yes (b) No 9. In your opinion, which are some of the critical factors for a successful PPP? ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________ Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 18 of 20 ___________________________________________________________________ __________________________ 10. In your opinion, which are the most frequent mistakes in the PPP projects? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ________________________ Appendix C. Critical Success Factors for PPP Project Please rate each item by placing a cross (X) in the relevant box based on a Likert scale from 1–5, where: 1—Not important at all; 2—Of little importance; 3—Of average importance; 4—Very important; 5—Absolutely essential; and select “N/A” if you are uncertain in rating a particular statement. CSF/s 1—Not Important at All 2—Of Little Importance 3—Of Average Importance 4—Very Important 5—Absolutely Important Stakeholders’ support Public sector’s organized structure Existing infrastructure Feasibility study Inter-departmental cooperation Statutory environment Sufficient social capital and/or sufficient time to build social capital Technical innovation in overcoming project complexity Defined revenue stream Existing strategic alliance Compatibility skills among the key parties The existence of potential for synergy between partners Good resource management and trust Community support Financial Capacity Trust, openness and fairness between parties Negotiation Environmental impact, legal/economic framework The identification of the right project Stable political leadership References Ahmeti, Eni, and Alba Demneri Kruja. 2020. Challenges and Perspectives of Supply Chain Management in Emerging Markets: A Case Study Approach. In Leadership Strategies for Global Supply Chain Management in Emerging Markets. Hershey: IGI Global, pp. 132–46. [CrossRef] American Management Association. 2018. Project Management: How to Build Interdepartmental Cooperation. New York: AMA. Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 19 of 20 Asllani, Arben, Richard Becherer, and Qirjako Theodhori. 2014. Developing a sustainable economy through entrepreneurship: The case of Albania. South-Eastern Europe Journal of Economics 12: 243–62. Beqiraj, Rovena, Gazmir Vehbi, Andi Memi, and Eljon Shkodrani. 2016. Koncesionet dhe Partneriteti Publik Privat: Manual per perdoruesit. Tirana: ATRAKO, HMH. Bitzenis, Aristidis, and Ersjana Nito. 2005. Obstacles to entrepreneurship in a transition business environment: The case of Albania. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development 12: 564–78. [CrossRef] Cheung, Esther, Albert Chan, Patrick Lam, Daniel Chan, and Yongjian Ke. 2012. A comparative study of critical success factors for public private partnerships (PPP) between Mainland China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Facilities 30: 647–66. [CrossRef] Dobrowolski, Zbysław. 2021. Are the supreme audit institutions agile?: A cognitive orientation and agility measures. European Research Studies Journal 24: 52–62. [CrossRef] Dobrowolski, Zbysław, Wereda Wioletta, and Saczy´nska-Sokół Sylwia. 2015. Relationship management in a public-private partnership. Hyperion International Journal of Econophysics and New Economy 8: 510–18. Feruni, Nerajda, and Eglantina Hysa. 2020. Free trade and gravity model: Albania as part of central European free trade agreement (CEFTA). In Theoretical and Applied Mathematics in International Business. Hershey: IGI Global, pp. 60–90. Grimsey, Darin, and Mervyn K. Lewis. 2007. Public Private Partnerships: The Worldwide Revolution in Infrastructure Provision and Project Finance. Northampton: Edward Elgar Publishing, Inc. Hardcastle, Cliff, Peter J. Edwards, Akintola Akintoye, and Bing Li. 2005. Critical Success Factors for PPP/PFI Projects in the UK Construction Industry: A factor Analysis Approach. Construction Management and Economics 5: 479–51. Helmy, Mohamed Ahmed. 2011. Investigating the Critical Success Factors For PPP Projects In Kuwait. Master’s Thesis, Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Real Estate and Construction Management, Stockholm, Sweden. Hoon, Young, Kwak Ying Chih, and C. William Ibbs. 2009. Towards a Comprehensive Understanding of Public Private Partnerships for Infrastructure Development. California Management Review 51: 51–78. Hysa, Eglantina, and Egla Mansi. 2021. Challenges of Sustainable Economic. In Journal of Financial and Monetary Economics. Bucharest: “Victor Slăvescu” Centre for Financial and Monetary Research. Hysa, Eglantina, Alba Kruja, Naqeeb Ur Rehman, and Rafael Laurenti. 2020. Circular economy innovation and environmental sustainability impact on economic growth: An integrated model for sustainable development. Sustainability 12: 4831. [CrossRef] Ismail, Suhaiza, and Shochrul Rohmatul Ajija. 2013. Critical success factors of public private partnership (PPP) implementation in Malaysia. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration 5: 6–19. [CrossRef] Jamali, Dima. 2004. Success and failure mechanisms of public private partnerships (PPPs) in developing countries: Insights from the Lebanese context. International Journal of Public Sector Management 5: 414–30. [CrossRef] Jefferies, Marcus. 2006. Critical success factors of public private sector partnerships: A case study of the Sydney SuperDome. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management 3: 451–62. [CrossRef] Jefferies, Marcus, Rod Gameson, and Steve Rowlinson. 2002. Critical success factors of the BOOT procurement system: Reflections from the Stadium Australia case study. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management 4: 352–61. [CrossRef] Keçi, Julinda. 2020. Public-private partnerships in Albania: From the legislative provisions to risk management. Paper presented at 4th International Balkans Conference on Challenges of Civil Engineering, BCCCE, EPOKA University, Tirana, Albania, December 18–19. Khan, Syed Abdul Rehamn, Zhang Yu, Mirela Panait, Laeeq Razzak Janjua, and Adeel Shah, eds. 2021. Global Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives for Reluctant Businesses. Hershey: IGI Global. Kruja, Alba. 2020a. Entrepreneurial orientation, synergy and firm performance in the agribusiness context: An emerging market economy perspective. Central European Business Review 9: 56–75. [CrossRef] Kruja, Alba Demneri. 2020b. Entrepreneurial challenges of Albanian agribusinesses: A content analysis. JEEMS Journal of East European Management Studies 25: 530–54. [CrossRef] Kruja, Alba Demneri, and Anisa Berisha. 2021. UK-Albania Tech Hub: Enhancing Tech Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Albania. Tirana: British Embassy Tirana. Maione, Gennaro, Daniela Sorrentino, and Alba Demneri Kruja. 2021. Open Data for Accountability at Times of Exception: An Exploratory Analysis during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy 16: 231–43. [CrossRef] Manta, Otilia, Eglantina Hysa, and Alba Kruja. 2021. Finances and National Economy: Frugal Economy as a Forced Approach of the COVID Pandemic. Sustainability 13: 6470. [CrossRef] Manta, Otilia, Mirela Panait, Eglantina Hysa, Elena Rusu, and Maria Cojocaru. 2022. Public procurement, a tool for achieving the goals of sustainable development. Amfiteatru Economic 61: 861–76. [CrossRef] Minnie, Johan A. 2011. Critical Success Factors for Public-Private Partnerships in South Africa. Ph.D. Thesis, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa. MONITOR. 2019. 200 VIP-at e 2018, viti i koncesioneve. September 27. Available online: https://www.monitor.al/200-vip-at-e-2018 -viti-i-koncesioneve-2/ (accessed on 1 October 2022). Nasto, Kostandin, and Junada Sulillari. 2021. Public-private partnerships: A profitability analysis of the partnerships in the energy sector in Albania. Fundamental and Challenging Issues in Scholarly Research 106: 106, 112. Adm. Sci. 2022,12, 160 20 of 20 NCPPP. 2017. 7 KEYS TO SUCCESS. December 15. Available online: https://www.ncppp.org/ppp-basics/7-keys/ (accessed on 1 October 2022). Ndonye, Hussein N., Emma Anyika, and George Gongera. 2014. Evaluation of Public Private Partnership Strategies on Concession Performance: Case of Rift Valley Railways Concession, Kenya. European Journal of Business and Management 6: 145, 166. Nunnally, Jum C. 1978. An overview of psychological measurement. In Clinical Diagnosis of Mental Disorders. Cham: Springer, pp. 97–146. Parvu, Daniela, and Cristina Voicu-Olteanu. 2009. Advantages and limitations of the public private partnerships and the possibility of using them in romania. Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences 5: 189–98. Plaku, Dorina, and Eglantina Hysa. 2019. The impact of tax policies on behavior of Albanian taxpayers. In Behavioral Finance and Decision-Making Models. Hershey: IGI Global, pp. 219–50. Preci, Gjovalin. 2016. Partneriteti Publik Privat në këndvështrimin auditues të KLSH. SOT News, December 15. Reich, Michael R. 2000. Public–private partnerships for public health. Nature Medicine 6: 617–20. [CrossRef] Rinkel, Briget K., Christopher Cormier, James L. Zheng, and Md Shamsur Saikat. 2016. Exploring Albania’s Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. Massachusetts, United States: Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Available online: https://digitalcommons.wpi.edu/iqp-all/445 (accessed on 1 October 2022). Rockart, John F. 1982. Future role of the Information systems executive. MIS Quarterly 6: 1–14. [CrossRef] Rowlinson, Steve. 1999. A definition of procurement systems. In Procurement Systems: A Guide to Best Practice in Construction. London: Routledge, pp. 27–53. Sanni, Afeez Olalekan. 2016. Factors determining the success of public private partnership projects in Nigeria. Construction Economics and Building 16: 42–55. [CrossRef] Soecipto, Raden Murwantara, and Koen Verhoest. 2018. Contract stability in European road infrastructure PPPs: How does governmental PPP support contribute to preventing contract renegotiation? Public Management Review 20: 1145–64. [CrossRef] Spahiu, Artan. 2020. Public-private partnership: An analysis of the legal features of PPP instrument in the Albanian reality. European Journal of Business and Management Research 5: 1, 6. [CrossRef] Tiong, Robert L., and Jahidul Alum. 1997. Evaluation of proposals for BOT projects. International Journal of Project Management 15: 67–72. [CrossRef] Tomja, Elsa. 2016. Partneritetet Publik-Privat dhe Faktorët Kritikë Të Suksesit në Implementimin e Tyre në Shqipëri. Durres: Universiteti Aleksander Mojsiu. Available online: https://vdocuments.net/partneritetet-publik-privat-dhe-faktort-kritik-t-suksesit-viewuesitsipas-se.html (accessed on 1 October 2022). WBIF, and EPEC. 2018. PPP Projects in the Western Balkans: Good Practice, Challenges and Lessons Learnt. Luxemburg: European Investment Bank. Xheneti, Mirela, and David Smallbone. 2008. The role of public policy in entrepreneurship development in post-socialist countries: A comparison of Albania and Estonia. EBS Review 24: 23–36. Available online: http://www.ebs.ee/file.php?21947 (accessed on 1 October 2022). Zhang, Xueqing. 2005. Critical Success Factors for Public–Private Partnerships in Infrastructure Development. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management 10: 212–25. [CrossRef]