A guidebook on public-private partnership in infrastructure

B. IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENT 
Implementation issues 
The project team should identify the implementation issues that may need to 
be resolved. Depending on the nature of the difficulties, they may need to be 
resolved either before the official commencement date of the project or during the 
construction period. 
A project may face four broad types of difficulties:
• Administrative; 
• Social; 
• Legal; 
and 
• Supply of materials for project construction.
Some of the typical administrative difficulties faced include land acquisition, 
utility shifting, lack of coordination between government departments, absence of 
clear rules, and undefined process and lack of control over the speed of decision-
making in other government departments whose approval or concurrence may be 
required.
Ideally, land acquisition and the shifting of utilities and structures should be 
completed before the start of construction. Comprehensive site readiness is probably 
the single most important element to avoid delays in large, complex infrastructure 
projects. This requires early coordination between the physical works team and the 
teams preparing the social and environmental components. 
Chief among the difficulties that are social in nature include agitation by local 
groups either against the project itself or some elements of it. Resistance against 
payment of increased tariff, new toll and agitation for more social benefits to local 
communities could also be common.
Critical attention needs to be given to the preparation and implementation of 
the social and environmental components of large projects. The resource needs for 
these components should be carefully assessed and made available in time. A large 
project may require relocation of households and other establishments. The impacts 
of such relocation (particularly public discontent) can be largely minimised by taking 
adequate mitigation measures through designing and implementing an appropriate 
resettlement and rehabilitation plan with the direct participation of the affected 
people. 
The typical legal difficulties in implementation may include difference in the 
interpretation of tender conditions, grant of execution stay by court, violation of 

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A Guidebook on Public-Private Partnership in Infrastructure
 
 

environmental and other laws, and consumer complaints. The project team should 

have the competency to deal with these matters. 
The project may also face difficulties in getting the supply of right construction 
materials in time due to shortage of supply, price escalation and delay in the 
amendment of codes and specifications. 
The project team should consider if any of such implementation difficulties 
would arise and how these may be resolved.