1 APPLICABILITY OF SECOND GENERATION PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP PROJECTS IN TURKEY: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Ibrahim Yitmen 1 , Ilknur Akiner 2 and Isilay Tekce 3 iyitmen@eul.edu.tr 1 , ilknurakiner@akdeniz.edu.tr 2 , isilay.tekce@okan.edu.tr 3 European University of Lefke, Department of Civil Engineering, Lefke, North Cyprus 1 Akdeniz University, Department of Architecture, Antalya, Turkey 2 Okan University, Department of Architecture, Istanbul, Turkey 3 ABSTRACT Public-private partnerships (PPP) is a procurement model in which the value for money is optimized through efficient allocation of risks, whole life service approach, private sector management skills as well as synergies from inter-linking the design, finance, construction and operations. Considering the implementation of several PPP models in Turkey, due to the dispersion of the legal regulations involving PPP, the lack of a systematic in certain context, the decree of nullity by the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Administrative Court at various times, has revealed the need for a framework law to be regulated in accordance with the Constitution. In this context, the government intends to establish a new legal and administrative framework for so called “Second Generation of the PPP Projects”. The purpose of this study is to propose a conceptual framework to assess the applicability of Second Generation PPP Projects that are on the agenda and to be implemented in the near future in Turkey. The framework characterizes the PPP projects in terms of technical, financial and economic, social, political and legal, environmental, and cultural dimensions. Each dimension is then characterized by a set of variables that are more relevant to characterize the PPP projects. The conceptual framework can be considered a starting point of future research aiming at developing a tool for assessing the expected performance of Second Generation PPP projects. This tool could be a useful instrument to support decisional process about the adoption of PPP Projects. The framework would become a benchmarking tool that can be used by stakeholders in order to derive managerial guidelines on how PPP projects should be correctly arranged and thus to move towards the best practices in applying PPP. Keywords: Public-Private Partnerships, Procurement, Public Construction Projects, Turkey INTRODUCTION Partnering between the public and private sectors, in some form or other, has been fairly common practice in the construction industry for over 100 years. Depending on the level of risk, the variety of arrangements range from public procurement to privatization. Since the 1990’s, there has been a rapid rise of PPPs across the world. Governments in developing as well as developed countries are increasingly using this procurement method to bridge the much needed infrastructure gap. As infrastructure funding gaps