Transparency Guidelines for Public-Private Partnerships (DE0046)

What is the public problem that the commitment will address? The public discourse in recent years has revealed a persistent scepticism in politics and society regarding public-private partnerships (PPPs). At the heart of the public criticism levelled at PPPs is the fear that long-term economic benefits and risks are divided unequally between the state and private-sector partners. That fear is fuelled primarily by a lack of information about how the actual economic outcomes of these projects develop.

What is the commitment? The Federal Ministry of Finance will draw up transparency guidelines. For its own PPP projects, the Federal Government is to have an obligation to set out in an understandable form, and publish, the services, expectations and outcomes of PPP projects (e.g. user satisfaction and actual operating costs) that are of relevance to the public interest. The actual development of PPP projects in relation to what was assumed beforehand is also to be communicated clearly and openly.

How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem? This improved communication on the above-mentioned subject matter is intended to give people a better insight into PPP mechanisms and consequently lead to greater public approval for this variety of procurement and similar forms of cooperation.

Why is this commitment relevant to OGP values? The project will generate transparency around information that serves as a basis for opting for and designing PPPs. The planned guidelines will therefore establish a transparency standard for federal PPP projects for the first time, which will make information available that was not accessible before. The objective is moreover to ensure, through the plans for participation and input from civil society, that the transparency guidelines are drafted in a way that reflects the justified information needs of the public.

Additional information: Implementation of an obligation formulated in the coalition agreement; connected to the Federal Government report on ongoing PPP projects (due in the third quarter of 2023; for previous reports (in German), see Bundestag printed papers 18/6898 and 19/25285)

Milestone activity with a verifiable deliverable | Start date - Implementation by

Agreement on a draft containing key points | August 2023 - December 2023

Public consultation on the agreed key points of the guidance | February 2024 - August 2024

First draft of the transparency obligation; internal and external consultations with stakeholders | September 2024 - July 2025

Legally binding establishment of the transparency commitment | August 2025 - December 2025