Privatization in Practice: Reports on Trends, Cases and Debates in Public Service by Business and Nonprofits

Cost efficiency was the initial goal of privatization--achieved in many cases but not consistently. Public services provided by the private sector were cheap in the beginning but became increasingly expensive, especially to low-income citizens. The lessons learned from early successes and failures gave birth to a new goal--effectiveness of services, as measured by accountable results. Government officials are not looking just for proven budget savings; they must also be concerned with the ...