Determinants of Public-Private Partnership Success in The Health Sector in Zambia: Key Success Variables Analysis

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the determinants of success factors of Public Private Partnerships in the health sector in Zambia. This study was descriptive. A questionnaire survey was used as the main research instrument to obtain relevant data from participants who have played key roles in the implementation of PPP projects from public and private sectors. This was preceded by a rigorous literature review to investigate the current status of the implementation of PPP procurement system in the health sector in Zambia. The questionnaire was divided into two major parts. Part A was on the information about the respondent and part B is on the overall success variables for PPP projects in Zambia and health sector in particular. The respondents were requested to rate the PPP success variables using a five-point Likert scale in part B. The rating systems for the importance of each variable in the questionnaire using the 1 to 5 scale were adopted. Score 1 represents not important, score 2 represents fairly important, score 3 represents important, score 4 represents very important, and score 5 represents highly important. A total of 255 questionnaires were distributed by hand delivery and a total of 184 completed questionnaires were completed and returned. This survey achieved a response rate of 72 per cent and this high response rate was achieved because the researcher was making necessary follow up which motivated the respondents to complete the questionnaires and return them in time. . Variable analysis was used as a statistical data analysis method for the identification and grouping of relatively small numbers of variables that have some things in common. It is a multivariate method that shows the relationships among correlated variables difficult to interpret This is a method that can be used to try to identify patterns in fairly large sets of data with substantial numbers of variables as the case was with this study. This procedure gives opportunity for making meaningful deductions from the large set of variables in the process of interpreting the outcomes of the questionnaire survey during data analysis and interpretations. Bartlett's Test of Sphericity was used which tests whether the correlation coefficients are all 0. The test computes the probability that the correlation matrix has significant correlations among at least some of the variables in a dataset, a prerequisite for factor analysis to work. Further, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure (KMO), and Measures of Sampling Adequacy (MSA) and variable extraction were also applied in the analysis. The results of variable analysis identified seven critical success variables as follows: projects feedback, leadership focus, risk allocation and economic policy, good governance and political support, short construction period, favourable socio-economic variables, and delivering publicly needed service. This study shows that more developmental projects could be delivered through PPP if the government could focus on these main variables in the implementation process. The result will influence policy development towards PPP and guide the partners in the development of PPP projects. Keywords: Developing countries, Zambia, Procurement, Public Private Partnerships, PPPs critical success variables, CSF, Measures of Sampling Adequacy, MSA, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure, KMO Bartlett's Test of Sphericity DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/14-15-04 Publication date: August 31 st 2023