Risk Management Strategies for Sustainable Private-Public Partnerships in Higher Education Development

Abstract

Current trends show that most Higher Education Institutions use some form of partnership to sustain their development projects and programs. Public-Private Partnerships were mostly used in infrastructural development, student loan facility and provision of goods and services. The partnerships bring in an element of cost sharing, win-win solutions, joint ventures and guaranteed development. While the Public-Private Partnerships can be viewed as a tool for sustainable development, caution should be taken as there is a possibility that some unscrupulous partners may short change the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). It is the purpose of this study to explore how HEIs were able to manage the risks involved in Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). The objectives of the study were to find out what challenges HEI‘s had in managing PPP‘s and what strategies they used in order to overcome the perceived threats to sustainable development. The study utilized indepth interviews with key informants who were either project managers or project coordinators from fourteen universities in Zimbabwe. The findings of the study indicated that sustainable development using PPP‘s was dependent on good governance and constant monitoring of the project. Most importantly the nature of PPPs relationship was such that HEI‘s would transfer risks to the private organizations and allow them to recoup the costs in time as in the Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) partnerships. Also, in cases of service outsourcing, HEIs required to regulate the parameters of costing and quality so that students or the institution were not taken advantage of. Some HEIs had partnerships with private financiers who provided students with loans for tuition/ boarding fees. While the loans agreement was between individual students and the financing organization, HEIs had the moral obligation to ensure that the transactional terms were mutually beneficial to both parties. A coherent PPP policy to guide and safeguard HEIs, legal framework for recourse and transparency in partner responsibility matrix were given as critical conditions and strategies for risk management. Participants agreed that there were explicit and inherent risks in any partnership. Therefore, HEI‘s would manage their risks by essentially creating a shared vision and by having a clear understanding of the risks and benefits from the partnership. The study recommended that HEIs should seek to fully understand their partners, work within a legal framework and be quick to communicate challenges. These strategies were viewed as enablers for HEIs to attain sustainable development through PPPs.