IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i2p1452-d1033312.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Barriers to Attracting Private Sector Investment in Public Road Infrastructure Projects in the Developing Country of Iran

Author

Listed:
  • Daniel W. M. Chan

    (Department of Building and Real Estate, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China)

  • Hadi Sarvari

    (Department of Building and Real Estate, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
    Department of Civil Engineering, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan 81595-39998, Iran)

  • Ahmad Abdul Jaleel Abdul Husein

    (Department of Civil Engineering, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan 81595-39998, Iran)

  • Khalid Mubarak Awadh

    (Department of Civil Engineering, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan 81595-39998, Iran)

  • Mahboobeh Golestanizadeh

    (Department of Management, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan 81595-39998, Iran)

  • Matteo Cristofaro

    (Department of Management and Law, University of Rome ‘Tor Vergata’, 00133 Rome, Italy)

Abstract

Private sector investment, the mainstream financing method for procuring public road transport development projects, has encountered several profound difficulties and risks during execution, particularly in developing countries. However, there needs to be more extensive investigations on the major barriers facing road transport infrastructure projects in these countries. In this vein, the present study aims to identify and assess the perceived barriers inhibiting private sector investment in delivering public road transport infrastructure projects in the developing country of Iran. The research method adopted is based on a descriptive survey with a three-round Delphi technique with 35 experts from both the private and public sector in Iran. According to the research study results, four main groups of legal and organizational, political, economic, and operational barriers have been found to significantly impact the attraction of private sector investment in such projects. The three most significant obstacles for public road transport infrastructure projects in developing countries include: (i) a lack of financial and investment safety; (ii) a lack of proficient managers and policies of public organizations in order to facilitate the process of privatization; and (iii) corruption in the privatization process. The survey findings can help the government and policymakers to eliminate or alleviate the potential barriers towards private sector participation in future public road infrastructure projects, particularly in those developing countries such as Iran.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel W. M. Chan & Hadi Sarvari & Ahmad Abdul Jaleel Abdul Husein & Khalid Mubarak Awadh & Mahboobeh Golestanizadeh & Matteo Cristofaro, 2023. "Barriers to Attracting Private Sector Investment in Public Road Infrastructure Projects in the Developing Country of Iran," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-26, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:2:p:1452-:d:1033312
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/2/1452/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/2/1452/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rasmané Ouédraogo & Hamidou Sawadogo & Relwendé Sawadogo, 2019. "Impact of Public Investment on Private Investment in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Crowding In or Crowding Out?," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 31(3), pages 318-334, September.
    2. Willoughby, Christopher, 2013. "How much can public private partnership really do for urban transport in developing countries?," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 34-55.
    3. Babatunde, Solomon Olusola & Perera, Srinath, 2017. "Analysis of traffic revenue risk factors in BOT road projects in developing countries," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 41-49.
    4. Athena Panayiotou & Francesca Medda, 2014. "Attracting private sector participation in infrastructure investment: the UK case," Public Money & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(6), pages 425-431, November.
    5. Ravonne A. Green, 2014. "The Delphi Technique in Educational Research," SAGE Open, , vol. 4(2), pages 21582440145, April.
    6. Jingfeng Yuan & Wei Li & Jiyue Guo & Xianbo Zhao & Mirosław J. Skibniewski, 2018. "Social Risk Factors of Transportation PPP Projects in China: A Sustainable Development Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-25, June.
    7. Cabrera, María & Suárez-Alemán, Ancor & Trujillo, Lourdes, 2015. "Public-private partnerships in Spanish Ports: Current status and future prospects," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 1-11.
    8. A. V. Thomas & Satyanarayana Kalidindi & L. S. Ganesh, 2006. "Modelling and assessment of critical risks in BOT road projects," Construction Management and Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(4), pages 407-424.
    9. Zahra Dehghan Shabani & Sima Safaie, 2018. "Do transport infrastructure spillovers matter for economic growth? Evidence on road and railway transport infrastructure in Iranian provinces," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(1), pages 49-63, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cao, Fuguo & Li, Runyu & Guo, Shaobo, 2024. "Rhetoric and reality of public-private partnerships in China: A sustainable public procurement perspective," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    2. Quintano, Claudio & Mazzocchi, Paolo & Rocca, Antonella, 2021. "Evaluation of the eco-efficiency of territorial districts with seaport economic activities," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    3. Abdi, Mohammad Hamed, 2021. "What the newcomers to transit-oriented development are confronted with? Evidence from Iranian policy and planning," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    4. Christoph Markmann & Alexander Spickermann & Heiko A. von der Gracht & Alexander Brem, 2021. "Improving the question formulation in Delphi‐like surveys: Analysis of the effects of abstract language and amount of information on response behavior," Futures & Foresight Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 3(1), March.
    5. Gianni Carbonaro & Eugenio Leanza & Philip McCann & Francesca Medda, 2018. "Demographic Decline, Population Aging, and Modern Financial Approaches to Urban Policy," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 41(2), pages 210-232, March.
    6. AlMalki, Hameeda A. & Durugbo, Christopher M., 2023. "Evaluating critical institutional factors of Industry 4.0 for education reform," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    7. Brookes, Naomi J. & Locatelli, Giorgio, 2015. "Power plants as megaprojects: Using empirics to shape policy, planning, and construction management," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 57-66.
    8. Nannan Yu & Tianhang Cui & Si Lv, 2023. "Does the High-Speed Rail Improve Employment in Peripheral Cities? Evidence From China’s Beijing–Shanghai HSR Line," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    9. Ludvík Eger, 2022. "The demands on competencies for digital transformation and the perception of business students," International Journal of Teaching and Education, European Research Center, vol. 10(1), pages 10-26, April.
    10. Nawaz, Saima & Mangla, Inayat Ullah, 2021. "The economic geography of infrastructure in Asia: The role of institutions and regional integration," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    11. Feng, Zhuo & Zhang, Shui-Bo & Gao, Ying, 2015. "Modeling the impact of government guarantees on toll charge, road quality and capacity for Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) road projects," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 54-67.
    12. Abraham Park & Chen Yu Chang, 2013. "Impacts of Construction Events on the Project Equity Value of the Channel Tunnel Project," ERES eres2013_97, European Real Estate Society (ERES).
    13. Surbhi Gupta & Anil Kumar Sharma, 2022. "Evolution of infrastructure as an asset class: a systematic literature review and thematic analysis," Journal of Asset Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 23(3), pages 173-200, May.
    14. Jokar, Ebrahim & Aminnejad, Babak & Lork, Alireza, 2021. "Assessing and Prioritizing Risks in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Projects Using the Integration of Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods," Operations Research Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 8(C).
    15. Honoré S. Houngbedji & Nassibou Bassongui, 2021. "Investissement Public et Investissement Privé en Afrique Subsaharienne: Rôle de la Qualité Institutionnelle," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 33(3), pages 466-478, September.
    16. Tsakiridis, Andreas & Mateo-Mantecón, Ingrid & O'Connor, Eamonn & Hynes, Stephen & O'Donoghue, Cathal, 2021. "Efficiency benchmarking of Irish and North Atlantic Spanish ports: Implications for blue growth," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    17. Wouter Thierie & Lieven Moor, 2016. "The characteristics of infrastructure as an investment class," Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, Springer;Swiss Society for Financial Market Research, vol. 30(3), pages 277-297, August.
    18. Muhammad Jufri Marzuki & Graeme Newell, 2020. "The investment opportunities in the innovation-led listed satellite and telecommunication infrastructure sectors," Journal of Property Investment & Finance, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 39(3), pages 223-238, April.
    19. Constantin Bürgi & Nisan Gorgulu, 2022. "The Impact of the Spatial Population Distribution on Economic Growth: Evidence from the United States," CESifo Working Paper Series 10008, CESifo.
    20. Zhang, Ailian & Pan, Mengmeng & Liu, Bai & Cao, Xianbin, 2023. "Do high-speed rail (HSR) station and airport affect local government debt risk? Evidence from China," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 41-51.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:2:p:1452-:d:1033312. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.