Public–private partnerships and beyond: Potential for innovation and sustainable development

Roberts and Siemiatycki, 2015; Siemiatycki, 2015). In many countries, their use has been encouraged in order to facilitate the growth of innovation and development processes in times of crisis and public budget constraints (Roumboutsos and Saussier, 2014).In Europe, for example, a recent EU directive concludes a path of reform started in the first half of the 2000s, which had simplified the regulatory framework imposed upon the procurement of public works (Directive 2014/24/ EU).In addition, with the Smart Specialization strategies, the European Union encourages member states to use the old procurement tools in a new sense (smart procurement), emphasizing the role that public demand can play in supporting the development of sustainable innovations (Edler and Georghiou, 2007;Edquist and Zabala-Iturriagagoitia, 2012;Edquist et al., 2015;Foray et al., 2012).The new measures fit within a broader collaborative framework and/or network-based approach to public policies (Klijn and Koppenjan, 2000, 2016).A particular feature of the policies that are developed within the collaborative framework is that the role of the policymaker -both at national and at regional level -is not simply to provide funds, issue call for tenders and select the best projects.Policy-makers are required to exercise a strategic action