The role of the Central PPP Unit in the Depatment of Finance is to facilitate the PPP process centrally, by developing the general policy framework (including, where necessary, the legal framework) within which PPPs operate and by providing central guidance to Departments and other State Authorities in that context. A full suite of guidance has been published to facilitate the PPP process and is available  on this website in the Key Documents folder. The guidance dovetails with the capital appraisal guidelines that apply to traditionally procured projects but also includes specific technical tools to evaluate PPP proposals and tenders.

The Central PPP Unit also chairs two key groups which are crucial to the effective management of the PPP process: an Inter-departmental Group (IDG) on PPPs representing all public service sectors, whose role is to bring together key decision makers to ensure that there is coherence and consistency across the public service in developing partnership arrangements with the private sector; and a Public/Private Informal Advisory Group (IAG) on PPPs which includes representatives of employers organisations (IBEC), the Trade Union Congress (ICTU) and the construction and engineering sectors (the CIF).