Danielle Nel-Sanders - School of Public Management, Governance and Public Policy, South Africa

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to examine Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the Fifth Industrial Revolution (۵IR). Government does not have the capacity to deliver services by itself. As a result, PPP have played an important role to assist government in delivering services in an efficient and reliable manner. Amongst the benefits of PPPs are value for money, risk transfer and affordability. Partnerships are increasingly important to assist government in achieving development goals. The fourth industrial revolution (۴IR) presents a number of implications in terms of government service delivery. PPPs are necessary to navigate these changes. This article aims to determine how PPPs can be improved to transition to the ۵IR. The ۵IR entails a supersmart society where humans are the pivotal link in overseeing technology.Methodology: This article is descriptive and conceptual in nature. Unobtrusive methods are used to synthesise and integrate extant research.Findings: A conceptual model is developed to illustrate the necessary elements in forming a PPP ecosystem that is relevant to the ۵IR and human-centric.Originality/Value: Very little research has been done on the ۵IR, particularly no research has been done on the purpose, scope and nature of public private collaboration for improving PPPs in the ۵IR.

Public private partnership, innovation, supersmart society, fourth industrial revolution, fifth industrial revolution