A few weeks ago, I had a call with a colleague in Kenya.

He told me about the chaos surrounding the proposed PPP at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

He may even be reading this email.

Hello.

The story is quite impressive.

Kenya needed to expand its main airport.

That part was not controversial.

JKIA was already operating above its designed capacity.

It needed a new terminal.

A second runway.

More capacity.

And Kenya did not exactly have a few billion dollars sitting comfortably in a drawer.

So, Adani submitted a privately initiated proposal… similar to market led proposal in New Zealand or unsolicited proposals in most of the world.

Around US$1.85 billion of investment.

New infrastructure.

And a 30-year airport concession.

On paper, this was precisely the kind of problem a PPP could solve.

Then they forgot one small detail.

Everyone else.

The proposal became a national political story before the project had earned the confidence of the workers, the public, civil society, Parliament or the courts.

The politicians were already selling the marriage.

Several stakeholders had not even been introduced to the groom.

Aviation workers feared job losses.

Civil society questioned the transparency, affordability and value for money of the proposal.

The courts stopped the process.

Airport workers went on strike.

Flights were delayed and cancelled.

Passengers were stranded.

Nothing says “Public-Private Partnership” like litigation, police and thousands of people unable to catch a flight.

Government officials continued defending the project.

Then, in November 2024, US prosecutors indicted Adani’s founder and other executives.

The allegations were denied.

But politically, the project was finished.

Kenya President Ruto cancelled it.

And here is the funny part… as in most of these circus…

Kenya still needed the airport.

Anyway…

Cancelling the PPP did not magically create a second runway.

So, after almost two years of controversy, court proceedings, protests and reputational damage, the Government has now signed a different US$1.2 billion expansion agreement with a Chinese contractor.

New structure.

New financiers.

New contractor.

Same airport.

Same capacity problem.

Only now the PPP industry is buried somewhere under the debris.

Look.

Stakeholders do not need to agree on everything.

That is impossible.

It’s even healthy to have disagreements and other points of view…

But they need to understand the project.

They need to trust the process.

And they need to believe they have been heard before a politician stands behind a microphone and announces that the future has arrived.

Stakeholder alignment is not a communications exercise.

It is part of project development.

You should engage early.

You should not declare victory early.

Because a politician can make a project famous in 30 seconds.

The market may need ten years to forget what happened next.

Make it bankable before you make it famous… that’s like a mantra for me.

And remember:

A badly prepared PPP does not only kill itself.

It can kill the next five good ones too.

Use this information at your own risk.

For personal advice, I have something to offer you.

ONLY 2 SEATS - First arrived, first served.

$49.90 VILENTIA ACCESS Before You Send. Direct access to experienced judgement before you send the letter, accept the change, present the Board... Read more Book A Call NOW

​

PD 1: If you liked this email, don't keep it in secret and forward it to a friend. They will thank you enormously one day.

PD 2: If somebody has sent you this email and you want to receive emails like this yourself, visit vicentevalencia.com

PD 3: If you want unsubscribe, click the link below.