Public-Private Partnerships Take Centre Stage at Day One of UAE Public Policy Forum 2018

The 2nd annual UAE Public Policy Forum (UAE PPF 2018) started today (Monday, January 15, 2018) at the Dubai World Trade Centre, arranged by the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG), the first study and mentor establishment focusing on administration and public policy in the Arab world.

Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Royal Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, the two-day forum was ushered in by H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF). The event takes place on January 15 and 16 under the theme Shaping the Future of Public Private Partnerships and covers such diverse sectors as healthcare, education, transportation, technology and innovation, Urban development and sustainable development.

The Forum's initial day consisted of a prominent panel discussion titled Constraints, Challenges and Prospects of Public-Private Partnerships, moderated by MBRSGs Executive President H.E. Dr Ali Sebaa Al Marri, which concluded that public-private partnerships are essential for creating the government of the future and catalysing economic development. Speaking at the session, H.E. Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy, said: A robust economy does not rely solely on the government; it counts on a strong private sector and solid relations between private and public. Defining the nature of this relationship is one the main challenges to its success, and this makes it crucial to have a federal law to regulate it, where the governments main role is a supervisory one.

Meanwhile, H.E. Abdulrahman Al Saleh, Director General at the Dubai Government's Division of Money, emphasized that legislations and policies are extremely important in constructing partnerships between the two industries. Balancing the needs and demands of the private and public sectors is the greatest difficulty in maintaining the connection between both," H.E. noted, "along with the challenge of establishing clear guidelines for private-sector investment in PPPs."

On a similar note, Eng. Abdul Mohsen Ibrahim Younis, CEO of RTA's Rail Agency, stated that PPPs financially engage the economic sector in government projects and solutions. It is, as a result, necessary to bring in these investments as they permit the federal government to diversify its financial resources and to rearrange funds to match advancement requires in other fields-- be they financial or social. These collaborations likewise enhance the competitiveness of government jobs, while at the same time improving the efficiency of the private sector.

In a roundtable conversation titled Benchmarking for Public Private Partnerships from the UK Experience experts eliminated the concept that there is a solitary optimum public-private partnership (PPP) design to take on between East. Each government needs to work out the right way for them, to ensure the outcome is not only sustainable but also creates value, emphasized Former UK Minister of State for Trade and Financial Investment, Lord Francis Maude, underlining a government's capability to design and obtain jobs as key to PPP success. This while Shaun Johnson, Legal Advise at ACWA Holding in Saudi Arabia, cautioned versus PPP systems coming to be as well complex, stating: When looking at which model is appropriate, GCC countries should adopt a strategic thought process both in terms of delivery and what it is that actually needs to be delivered.

The second session, meanwhile, explored the topic of PPPs as a Catalyst for Reform or Commercialization of a Public Service, where panellists asked for making sure harmony and alignment of objectives in connections in between the general public and private sectors to supply the preferred end results, and enable PPPs to produce work and myriad services to a growing population. Moreover, the experts asked for a phased approach to PPPs and a well-established record to ensure success for both fields. The private sector, they kept in mind, is effective in terms of time and expense, in addition to being a key engine for openness and innovation. Finally, the panel carried on to the effects of PPPs in medical care and education, stressing that the general objective for PPPs in these sectors must take into consideration the overall plan purpose and desired end results.

The Forum's first day also consisted of four concurrent scientific sessions or "Knowledge Hubs", the initial of which, titled PPPs: From Early Childhood to Tertiary Education ended that public-private partnerships (PPPs) that concentrate on appropriately preparing Emirati university graduates for access into the private sector are necessary for levelling the affordable work having fun area within the UAE's economic sector, since many expats involve the UAE with higher-quality work experience as an outcome of their countries' a lot more established education systems, putting their Emirati counterparts at a disadvantage. Tangible steps are being taken to address this problem, it was disclosed, such as the contract between 24 colleges and 4,500 exclusive business entities to promote apprenticeship.

The 2nd "Knowledge Hub" looked into "PPPs in Practice in Dubai and KSA", where professionals started by stressing the space between public law and practice in Saudi Arabia's education industry, which developed a have to change the plan of interaction between the general public and private sectors in regards to education to involve the last in developing the system that extends more than 30,000 institutions, 5 million pupils and over 700,000 instructors. The session then took a better look at the UAE's healthcare field, where a research study conducted by MBRSG disclosed that 55% of UAE residents are satisfied with the current system, their leading four concerns were: top quality, accessibility, responsiveness and affordability.

In the third concurrent session - Implementing and Monitoring PPPs - panellists discovered the partnership in between Australia's exclusive and public industries in education, emphasizing that for such a partnership to do well, it has to have a particular and calculated goal and to totally detail all advantages both sectors stand to appreciate from coordinating. The professionals after that evaluated the gain from PPPs to the transport industry, which is a key factor in the effectiveness of any economy. The sector provides lots of areas where collaboration can be helpful, including facilities advancement, curbing carbon exhausts and developing hi-tech solutions - as held true with Dubai's "Salik" system.

The 4th and final session - PPP Executive Seminar - recalled at the historic origins of public-private collaborations and took place to define it from the point of view of both stakeholders. Speakers explained that the public field requires this sort of partnership as a result of its minimal resources and the continuous need to develop framework.

The UAE Public Policy Forum 2018 looks for to help stakeholders in both public and economic sectors examine partnership jobs in the UAE and the region, exchange ideas and experiences, and establish new policies, guidelines and activity plans for lasting growth and the knowledge economic climate. It focuses on 6 major columns: Identifying and examining opportunities for public-private partnerships; producing a making it possible for environment for PPPs; reviewing visions and approaches to enhance collaborations and increase efficiency; performance examination; using smart innovations and innovation to the advantage of PPPs; and establishing plans to govern public-private partnerships in the future.