The World Bank’s new Benchmarking Infrastructure Development (BID) website provides the latest data to benchmark infrastructure development. © Base Three LLC
Do you want to know the latest data related to the quality of the legal and regulatory frameworks for preparing, procuring, and managing public-private partnerships (PPPs) and unsolicited proposals (USPs)? The World Bank’s new Benchmarking Infrastructure Development (BID) website may be just the tool for you.
This latest database update reveals that out of 140 economies assessed, 60 have enacted reforms between June 1, 2019, and June 1, 2022. Those reforms show that economies are improving their scores (range 0–100) as they adopt best practices. While not all regulatory changes impacted the measured benchmarks, the data show score increases in all four thematic areas since the data presented in BID 2020.
Key developments include the restructuring of legal frameworks in seven economies through the adoption of new PPP-specific laws, which have replaced previous standalone PPP legislation. Additionally, four economies have enhanced their PPP environments through amendments to existing laws.
The regions that have witnessed the most substantial legal changes in PPP governance are Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Europe and Central Asia (ECA), and Africa Eastern and Southern (AFE), with 69%, 57%, and 53% of economies within these regions implementing reforms, respectively.
While not all reforms have had a profound impact on the quality of the legal environment for PPPs, there are notable exceptions. Togo, for instance, has significantly redefined its legal framework by introducing a new PPP law and implementing decrees, leading to the most considerable improvement in scores across all thematic areas.
An important element in establishing a robust PPP framework is the creation of a dedicated PPP unit. In this vein, three additional economies have established specialized government entities to support the development of PPP programs and provide necessary administrative and technical assistance.
The World Bank remains committed to providing valuable insights and support to enhance infrastructure development worldwide. The BID 2023 database serves as a testament to this commitment —the BID website hosts an extraordinary wealth of data that is underpinned by collection efforts in each of the 140 economies covered.
Are you curious about regional trends or how different income levels stack up? The revamped BID site's got you covered with aggregate data that is easy to navigate. But that's not all, you can dive deep into the world of good international practices and see how they spread (or not) across the planet.
For those who love the nitty-gritty details, you can get your hands on the full survey for each economy, assess the latest reforms, and spot the practices that are still on the to-do list. Moreover, the user can easily download an economy summary PDF to pinpoint areas ripe for reform. But wait, there's more! For the ultimate data deep dive, the full database can be downloaded, and it captures the legal basis for more than 100 questions in the 140 economies.
Please stay tuned for the forthcoming Benchmarking Infrastructure Development report, which will delve into the reforms in detail and provide valuable insights and analysis on global PPP practices and legal standards.
For more information, please visit the BID website at https://bpp.worldbank.org/.
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