Achieving value for money in waste management projects: determining the effectiveness of public-private partnership in Ghana

Purpose Governments all over the world are increasingly entering into partnership agreement with the private sector through public-private partnership (PPP) models for the development and management of public projects and services. Thus, the purpose of this study is to first examine the factors that enter into government's attitude, value for money (VFM) and PPP-based waste management projects (WMPs) in Ghana. Further, this study examines the relationship between PPP-based waste management and VFM, along with the mediating role of government's attitude. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected through a survey questionnaire from four metropolitan municipal assemblies of Ghana. This study's sample consisted of 230 respondents, and structural equation modeling was employed to conduct an empirical analysis.The structured model had evaluated the critical success factors (CSFs). Subsequently, the measurement model helped in the path analysis of the proposed model. Findings The authors found a nonpositive relationship between PPP-based WMPs and VFM; however, government's attitude will influence the achievement of VFM. Reliance on quality targets is ranked as the highest CSF in PPP-based WMPs in Ghana. Also, incentives for private sector participation and effective private sector participation are ranked as the least CSFs. Limitations Most of the questionnaire's items were self -rated by employees of municipal assemblies who were not policymakers. This must have increased the possibility of common method bias. In addition, the study was limited to Ghana (a developing economy); therefore, the generalization of the results should be done with much caution. Practical implications This study suggests to develop a network of private sector consortiums considering international and national participants who are engaged in PPPs in order to ensure successful delivery and hence valuing for money. Originality/value This study offers a novel perspective to investigate the relationship of PPP-based WMPs and VFM and shows how the government's attitude mediates this relationship.