PPPAmericas Conference focuses on public private partnerships (PPP) potential as a tool for development.
Follow the livestream at www.pppamericas.org
Business and government leaders from around Latin America gathered to examine innovations in using PPPs as a tool for development and economic growth in the region. In recent years, Latin America and the Caribbean have experienced increasing interest in using PPPs as a tool to attract private sector investment.
Experts are also exploring how PPPs are gaining traction as an opportunity for private investment in new sectors, such as health, education, or green projects and in new settings, for example, poorer countries and subnational governments.
This year's edition, the fourth PPPAmericas conference, addresses the theme “New Frontiers, New Actors." The conference is the leading event related to public-private partnerships in Latin America and the Caribbean and is organized by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, in collaboration with the National Planning Department of Colombia.
According to the 2012 Infrascope, a report analyzing the environment for PPPs in the region issued this week by the MIF and the Economist Intelligence Unit, most of the region’s countries have developed specific laws and regulations or set up PPP units.
“The reality of continued demand for infrastructure improvements has driven a number of countries to step up their efforts to build PPP design and implementation capacity. We are seeing new PPP agencies, new laws, increased technical skills, and other reforms," said Nancy Lee, General Manager of the MIF. "At the MIF, through our new advisory services and our forthcoming platform to connect SMEs to project opportunities, we are committed to help new actors design and participate in sound PPPs.”
Regional Public-Private Partnerships Advisory Services Program
As part of the conference, the MIF and the IDB´s Infrastructure and Environment Sector are launching a regional PPP advisory services program. This innovative initiative is designed to enable governments to attract increased private sector participation in infrastructure projects and strengthen government capacities in the design, execution and management of PPPs. It will focus its efforts especially on national governments in small and less developed countries and governments at the sub-national level that lack capacities. To apply, go to ppp.fomin.org
About the MIF
The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) supports private sector-led development benefitting low-income populations and the poor - their businesses, their farms, and their households. As an experienced actor and partner with practical knowledge on a local level, the MIF has organized programs throughout the region to improve regulatory frameworks, and to increase the capacity of governments to develop and implement PPPs for infrastructure and basic services.
Since 2004, the MIF has leveraged $20 million in 19 technical cooperation projects, serving as a catalyst for an additional $671 million in private investment and more than $4 billion in anticipated future investments through PPPs.