Identification of Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for Public Private Partnership (PPP) Construction Projects in Syria

The collaboration between the public and the private sectors is an important issue that has attracted the attention of most governments around the world. Public Private Partnership (PPP) is one important approach among many that meets this goal. Syria, in the present time, needs this type of contract to reduce the huge pressure on the treasury by attracting the required funds for developing, extending and operating many vital infrastructure projects. In fact, the best results obtained from PPP contracts depend on determining the Critical Success Factors (CSFs), which are influenced by the local strategies and related to the nature of each of these factors and its importance, without neglecting the nature of the project under consideration. This research aims at identifying the critical success factors that influence PPP projects in Syria based on previous similar studies supported by a structured questionnaire survey. It also attempts to uncover the current PPP practice and highlight the main obstacles that hinder its implementation in the Syrian construction industry. The identified CSFs are ranked according to their importance, for public and private sectors independently and collectively. This research ultimately aims at developing a new practical framework to help decision makers both in public and private sectors in selecting the optimum PPP contract for the construction industry in Syria taking the most important CSFs into account.