The United Nations (UN) is currently considering Qatar and Saudi Arabia as possible host states for an international public-private partnership (PPP) centre to assist countries looking to develop their PPP expertise.

The aim of the centre will be to develop the knowledge and skills of authorities, which aim to set up a PPP sector.

The school will focus on the formation of legal and regulatory frameworks necessary to facilitate a PPP sector along with identifying possible sectors and projects suitable for PPP development.

The UN compiled a list of 56 member states it deemed would be most likely to benefit from developing a PPP capability.

While it originally looked at Abu Dhabi - among other locations such as Russia - to site the project, attention has now turned to Qatar and Saudi Arabia as potential hosts for the school.

The PPP school will draw on international expertise. The UN has been in talks with Partnerships UK about the direction of the project – primarily on the issue of whether it should be a pure school or take a ‘learning by doing’ approach.