A Guide for Sustainable Urban Development of the 21st Century

Shanghai Manual – A Guide for Sustainable Urban Development in the 21st Centuryimportance of managing private and public participation is extremely important at theinfrastructure level, especially given the size of the investments required. Mega-events requirevery significant investments and therefore many cities and governments shy away from them.The development of large-scale infrastructure with ongoing maintenance requirements (e.g.,transportation) often requires public-private partnerships that can help secure additionalfinancing, offer specialized expertise, and better manage risk.The involvement of private companies is extremely important as they contribute funding andinnovation capabilities. According to a report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers: “Privatepartners have complemented public-sector know-how with additional funding, expertise, andoversight [....] In fact, the costs and benefits associated with mega-events present idealopportunities for public-private investment partnerships that serve wider urban developmentgoals. Deals that are structured to be mutually beneficial to both the public and privatepartners are most likely to succeed because each partner becomes an active stakeholder.Depending on the particular deal or type of infrastructure investment, private partnerssometimes become long-term stakeholders. As cities encourage more private-sectorparticipation, they can realize the twin benefits of improved access to capital and greaterbudgetary certainty; well-structured contracts can allocate risks—related to cost overrun,delay, and quality—to the private sector.” 8Cooperation with International Oversight Bodies - All mega-events have some centralorganizing authority that enforces rules, regulations and best practices. The very natures ofthe international organizing bodies demonstrate the relevance and importance of the globalinvolvement in support of each event. The Bureau International des Exposition (BIE) incharge of Expos represents 157 member states, while the International Olympic Committeehas around 205 national Olympic committees, and FIFA has about 203 football associations.Although the members are quite different in each organization, their number reflects the voiceof a very significant majority of the world community in their respective areas of humanendeavor.Thus, when a mega-event is assigned to a city, it brings a strong international legitimacy tothe host and, at the same time, it establishes a very high degree of public accountability.However, the important role of the international bodies does not end there. In fact, theinvolvement of these oversight organizations ensures the following benefits:• Transferring best practices - each mega-event is a novel experience for a city, whichcan rely on the oversight body for strategic and organizational support.8 Game on: Mega-event infrastructure opportunities, PriceWaterhouseCoopers Report, April 2011.13