‘You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’: An examination of actor engagement in water public private partnerships

Public–private partnerships, or PPPs, first gained prominence in the water sector with the promise of providing more efficient and lower-cost water services and infrastructure. Despite criticism, water PPPs continue to grow globally and receive support from a diverse set of actors around the globe. This empirical research uses a combination of inductive and deductive approaches to study the engagement of key actors in water PPPs, including the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and intergovernmental organizations. We map out the differing relationships across key actors engaged in water PPPs to examine the interdependencies between actors. We uncover how actors help to serve or promote water PPPs and how, in turn, water PPPs help with the achievement of different actor goals. Our findings reveal how through PPPs, private sector actors utilize the sustainable development goals as a form of moral authority to exhibit corporate social responsibility. We also find that the unique capabilities of pro-PPP NGOs enable them to serve as connectors between actors in facilitating water PPPs. As climate change increasingly strains water resources globally, understanding the goals, motivations, and capabilities of the diverse actors engaged in the water sector is crucial for addressing water challenges going forward.