PPP Bill tabled

The Public-Private Partnership Bill has been tabled in Parliament with provisions of resolving PPP venture disputes through discussions, third-party mediation, and arbitration under the proposed law.

Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury, in-charge of the Prime Minister’s Office for parliamentary affairs, placed the bill on Sunday.

The government says the law is being enacted to give public-private partnership a firm legal basis and to promote economic development.

The government at present signs agreements with the private sector to implement PPP projects under the Policy and Strategy for Public-Private Partnership of 2010.

The proposed law says: “The government can declare any project a national priority-project subject to approval of the relevant authorities and Cabinet in the interest of fostering socio-economic development or a prompt end to any large-scale public suffering.”

It stipulates that a company must be formed before a PPP project can be implemented.

The bill says in case of any dispute over any PPP project, the two sides shall first try to resolve it through discussions. If the effort fails, they can go for third-party mediation, and finally choose arbitration, if the second option, too, proves futile.

It says there will be an advisory council led by the prime minister to oversee the projects. The finance minister will be its vice-chairman and the prime minister’s principal secretary, the member secretary.