PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP AS AN INSTRUMENT OF STATE POLICY FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article substantiates public-private partnership as an instrument of state policy for the development of small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine. The relevance of the study is determined by the need to combine reconstruction investment requirements with the expansion of market opportunities, productivity and resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises. The new legislation on public-private partnerships creates a modern framework for long-term interaction between the public and private sectors; however, the scale, financial complexity and high transaction costs of projects may restrict SME participation. The purpose of the article is to determine the organisational and managerial foundations for using PPPs as an instrument of SME development policy. The study applies systemic, institutional and structural-functional approaches, legal analysis, content analysis of strategic documents, comparison and conceptual modelling. It is clarified that a PPP should not be equated with any cooperation between government and business, public procurement, grant support or consultation, because its defining features are long-term interaction, private investment, performance-based contractual governance and risk allocation. The concept of an “SME-sensitive public-private partnership” is proposed as an approach in which public value and project efficiency are combined with open, proportionate and verifiable pathways for SME participation without discriminatory preferences. Four channels of PPP influence on SMEs are systematised: direct project participation; engagement in supply chains; access to infrastructure created by the project; and capability development through standards, innovation, skills and cluster cooperation. It is substantiated that SME impact assessment should be integrated into project preparation, competitive selection, contracting, implementation and monitoring. An SME impact passport for a PPP project is proposed to record the baseline, participation channels, exclusion risks, contractual mechanisms, indicators and data sources. The approach emphasises timely payment, proportionate qualification requirements, transparent market communication, integrity safeguards and verification of additionality. The practical value of the results lies in their applicability by central and local public authorities when building project pipelines, conducting market consultations, drafting contractual conditions, organising supplier development and assessing the impact on the business environment.