Public private partnership (PPP) in heritage conservation: the case study of Casa de Cha Long Wa, Macao

Abstract

Public private partnership (PPP) is a favorable cooperation mode in delivery of public infrastructure and service projects. This concept is warmly discussed in economic perspective on providing a wide range of general public services. The private sector which involved in the public services work, it helps release public sector’s finance pressure on funds and reduce the risks on conducting the works.

When this PPP concept applied into conservation works, government and private sector utilize resource they have and cooperate with each other to realize ultimate work. In general, PPP is applied in the conservation on government owned property and work for public interest. The scale of the project is typically large and last for a long time. The private sectors which join in the work are organizations at most. It is rarely to see government-individual cooperation in PPP mode. Such cooperation is encouraged, since a successful conservation work is not judged by project scale and length of work, even money spending, but the social continuum to the public. Therefore, the key issue addressed by this dissertation is to documentary the conservation work undertaken in a teahouse in Macao, especially focusing on the PPP work in process. The purpose is to reveal a successful conservation practice applied PPP in a small scale, private owned property, an individual as private sector participated in conservation work.

The dissertation examines historical, cultural and social backgrounds of the teahouse building and approaches primary source by interviewing with stakeholders on their comments and opinions. After collecting information and analyzing results, a framework on judging the success of PPP work is generated at the end which makes this research valuable and unique. The research work could be used as a reference for future study on PPP work with project characteristics like the case discussed in this dissertation.