Public–private dialogue
Knowledge bank
Overview
Public–private dialogue (PPD) provides a structured way for government and the private sector to identify constraints, develop solutions and improve the design and implementation of policies that affect businesses and investment.
Since 2019, the UK Government, through Invest Salone, has worked with the Government of Sierra Leone, the private sector and development partners to strengthen PPD and demonstrate its value in practice. Support has ranged from Finance Act consultations and sector-based dialogue to capacity building, practical tools and technical assistance. These initiatives have helped strengthen collaboration between government and business and build the skills and systems needed for more effective stakeholder engagement.
As the programme has progressed, the focus has increasingly shifted from individual dialogue initiatives towards institutionalisation. The development of a national PPD Guide and toolkit provided practical approaches to consultation, action tracking and accountability, while engagement with the Public Sector Reform Unit and Public Service Commission has created an opportunity to incorporate PPD principles and stakeholder engagement into wider public sector reform.
This knowledge bank brings together Invest Salone’s experience, learning and resources from that journey. Through timelines, features, reports, practical tools, presentations and other materials, it documents some of the ways that PPD has been used in Sierra Leone, what has been learned and how these approaches can strengthen more inclusive, responsive and sustainable policymaking beyond the life of the programme.
Invest Salone’s legacy lies in the individual dialogues and reforms it facilitated and helped advance, as well as in the capacity, tools and institutional mechanisms it developed through this work. These provide Sierra Leonean institutions with practical approaches to stakeholder engagement, feedback and accountability that can be adapted and applied beyond the life of Invest Salone. The Public Service Bill consultations demonstrate how these approaches are already informing wider public sector reform, while providing an opportunity for Sierra Leone’s institutions to determine how structured stakeholder engagement can best be sustained over the longer term.
What is PPD?
While definitions vary, PPD is generally considered to be a structured approach to engagement between government, private sector and other stakeholders – primarily focused on shaping economic development policy and improving the business and investment climate. It aims to generate practical policy solutions, align commercial and development objectives and support inclusive growth, competitiveness and poverty reduction. While its core application lies in economic governance, PPD principles can also be adapted to areas like infrastructure and social development. In Sierra Leone, past PPD efforts have generally been informal or short-lived, which has limited their impact.
News stories
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Public Service Bill consultations mark milestone in Sierra Leone’s public–private dialogue journey
Invest Salone introduces new guide to strengthen public–private partnership in policymaking
Sierra Leone’s public sector and agribusinesses collaborate on a more efficient import duty waiver system
Sierra Leone’s public and private sector take the first steps towards a sustainable finance roadmap
Roundtable for financial investors in Sierra Leone
Second public-private dialogue furthers plans to boost poultry production in Sierra Leone
Invest Salone’s showcase highlights how collaboration fuels private sector development
Sierra Leone’s financial sector to meet to discuss sustainable finance standards
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Resources
Discover tools, case studies, presentations and videos below
Bridging business and government – PPD guide
Land reform in Sierra Leone: The benefits of public–private dialogue
Presentation: Public–private dialogue
Presentation: “Public Sector Champions Roundtable on Institutionalising Effective Public-Private Dialogue (PPD) in Sierra Leone”
Presentation: “From Dialogue to Impact: A Practical PPD Prioritisation Approach for Sierra Leone MDAs”
Strengthening collaboration in Sierra Leone: The Public–Private Dialogue Guide
Collaboration that works: Reforming trade through public–private dialogue
Stakeholder consultative meeting on the Public Service Bill 2026, Koinadugu & Falaba TV News Online