Appraisal of Private Sector Involvement in Infrastructure Development in Lagos State, Nigeria

Abstract

The need for the provision of infrastructure in any developing country cannot be overemphasized as it constitutes the
backbone of the country’s national economy. Considering the importance of infrastructure, government at all levels has often
borne the full responsibility of providing infrastructure via dependence on loans and credits from financial institutions not
recognizing the fact that the investment requirement for the infrastructure deficit is such that cannot possibly be met by relying on
the public sector to boost public investment without increasing public borrowing. To this end, this research sought to appraise the
involvement of the private sector in infrastructure development in Lagos State through the use of the public-private-partnership
(PPP). Questions were asked to investigate the level of awareness about and the use of various models or variants of PPPs.
105 questionnaires were administered on professional firms/agencies (construction consultants, contractors, financing
institutions and concessionaires) that have been or are involved in PPP projects in Lagos state. 66 responses were obtained.
The data was subjected to both descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. The results of the study indicate that the levels of
awareness of private sector involvement in infrastructure development using PPPs as well as the areas of involvement were not
significant. It is recommended that government should put more efforts to improve the level of awareness on the involvement of
the private sector participation in the provision of infrastructure through public enlightenment both locally and internationally
stating the benefits that are obtainable both for citizens and investors.