Public-Private Partnerships for Trade Facilitation: A Theoretical Model

Abstract

Trade Facilitation (TF) is a response to the observed growth in international trade over the last few years. Part of the solution to today¿s problems has been provided by Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). This type of partnerships became known as one of the alternatives to increasing the effectiveness of investments and improvements. Since TF involves a relation between public and private agents, alternatives to solutions within the international trade field fall on this kind of partnerships. However, simply establishing a relation between both agents does not insure that all the benefits of TF will be reached. The objective of this research is to propose a theoretical model which can contribute to the measurement of the factors which mostly influence TF oriented PPPs. Such model derives from the theory of PPPs and presents a relationship matrix between Critical Success Factors (CSFs) and the perceived/expected performance of a TF oriented PPP. The relationship between each variable and the performance of a partnership was tested in order to quantify its strength. In order to validate the proposed theoretical model, we use the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) method. With this study, therefore, the intention is to understand which factors are responsible for determining the success of a TF oriented PPP. In other words, the research is dedicated to answering the following research problem: which factors influence the success of TF oriented PPPs the most? Currently, no similar study concerning this was found in literature. Data was gathered both at national and international level, focusing on professionals from the private and public sectors and academia that either work with TF within their regular functions, or have an understanding about it. Results have shown that the variables of "macro-environment", "micro-environment" and "abilities of parties" presented, in that order, the most influence over TF oriented PPPs.