PUBLIC–PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND HEALTH INFRASTRUCTUREDEVELOPMENT IN KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OFSELECTED PUBLIC HOSPITALS
Keywords:
health infrastructure development, Kaduna state, Nigeria, Public hospitals, Public–Private partnership.Abstract
This article examines the contribution of PPPs to infrastructural development in selected
public hospitals in Kaduna State, identifies implementation challenges, and proposes
strategies for strengthening PPP sustainability. The study adopts a qualitative exploratory
design based on semi-structured interviews with purposively selected stakeholders, including
government health officials, hospital administrators, healthcare workers, private partners,
and development-sector actors. Documentary evidence was also reviewed to support
triangulation. Findings indicate that PPPs have contributed to hospital rehabilitation,
diagnostic and laboratory upgrades, solar energy provision, improved patient flow,
computerized records, and enhanced operational efficiency. Nevertheless, their effectiveness
is constrained by delayed funding, bureaucratic bottlenecks, weak monitoring systems,
fragmented regulation, political interference, poor stakeholder communication, and
inadequate maintenance planning. The article argues that PPPs can support health-system
strengthening in Kaduna State only when embedded within transparent procurement systems,
predictable financing arrangements, inclusive stakeholder governance, and long-term
maintenance frameworks. It contributes context-specific qualitative evidence on the
institutional and governance conditions required for PPPs to deliver sustainable health
infrastructure outcomes in subnational Nigeria.
Keywords: Public–Private Partnership; health infrastructure; Kaduna State; Nigeria;
hospital governance; stakeholder engagement; qualitative research.