In the Public Interest:
Delivery of Sustainable, Transparent and Inclusive Infrastructure
26 March 2018
Paris, France
Ensuring integrity in infrastructure governance
While many infrastructure projects are successfully delivered as targeted, infrastructure projects are also vulnerable to being selected, designed and contracted in a way that promotes special interests rather than the wider public interest; either by deliberate capture, including in certain cases corruption, or systemic biases in the way evidence is considered and decisions are taken. As the sums of money involved in large projects are significant, the risks at the interface of the public and private spheres are high and require careful management.
Addressing integrity and promoting transparency in infrastructure policy is not only a political and legal issue; it also makes economic sense. Getting infrastructure governance right helps to deliver the intended economic and social benefits and to create a predictable and equitable business environment for firms and investors. Government, business and civil society share a common objective with respect to reducing corruption and fraud.
This year, the OECD Forum on Governance of Infrastructure looked at the governance frameworks, standards and instruments to ensure that infrastructure is not only economically effective and sustainable, but also transparent, fair and inclusive.
Attendees
The forum brought together key decision-makers covering relevant fields, professions, regions, the public and private sector; from centres of government, ministries of finance, regulators, sub-national governments, financial institutions and institutional investors to work together on ways to provide infrastructure in the public interest.
Programme
The meeting highlighted some of the most effective practices in key areas for ensuring integrity and transparency in infrastructure governance, such as stakeholder participation in infrastructure policy; standardised and inclusive procurement processes; open contracting and disclosure; as well as techniques to avoid policy capture.
Speakers included:
- Vitor Gaspar, Director, Fiscal Affairs Department, IMF
- James Stewart, former Chairman of KPMG’s Global Infrastructure practice
- Chris Heathcote, CEO at Global Infrastructure Hub
- Hartwig Schafer, Vice-President, Governance Global Themes, World Bank Group
- Deborah L. Wetzel, Senior Director, Governance Global Practice
- Eugene Zhuchenko, Executive Director, Long-Term Infrastructure Investors Association
- Mr. Christophe Dossarps, Chief Executive Officer, Sustainable Infrastructure Foundation
- Ms. Mari Kiviniemi, OECD Deputy Secretary-General
The meeting was chaired by:
Mr. Thomas Barrett, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and former Chief Representative of the European Investment Bank (EIB) to the United States
Meeting documentation
Related information
Previous meetings
Registration & information
Contact [email protected]
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