Zinchuk G.M., Okanov A.V.
Public-private partnership in higher education: implementation features under conditions of digital adaptation
Keywords: public-private partnership, higher education, digitalization, digital infrastructure, concessions
Under conditions of digital transformation, higher education institutions face the challenges of not only updating their material base, but also developing digital infrastructure, introducing online platforms and enhancing digital competencies. At this, budget financing of higher education is directed mainly to current expenses, and the need for large innovative projects remains unmet. Public-private partnership is considered as a tool to fill this gap, however, existing mechanisms of such interaction in Russia historically developed as an instrument of infrastructural concessions. To date, there has been no systematic assessment of the extent to which the current regulatory framework is suitable for adapting public-private partnerships to the goals of digital development at universities beyond campus construction. The purpose of the study is to identify the specific characteristics of implementing public-private partnership mechanisms in higher education in the context of digital transformation. Materials and methods. The methodological framework of the study was based on a comprehensive approach that combined an analysis of the regulatory framework with an empirical assessment of the implementation of public-private partnership mechanisms. The following methods were used in the work: comparative legal analysis, statistical analysis, comparative analysis, generalization and synthesis. The empirical basis of the research is formed by regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation, official statistical materials of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, regional ratings of public-private partnership development, as well as scientific works by domestic and foreign authors devoted to financial support and innovative development of higher education. Results. Based on a comparative legal analysis of federal laws № 115-FZ "On Concession Agreements" dated July 21, 2005 and "On Public-Private Partnership, Municipal-Private Partnership in the Russian Federation and Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation" dated July 13, 2015, № 224-FZ, it was established that the latter of these is a more flexible regulatory framework for implementing public-private partnerships in higher education in the context of digitalization, since within the framework of this regulatory document it is possible to work with intangible assets and various forms of project activities. The following list of objectives for digital transformation of higher education institutions was formulated: creating and modernizing digital infrastructure, implementing digital educational platforms, integrating innovative technologies, enhancing the digital competencies of the staff and expanding access to education. The analysis of trends in the public-private partnership market in Russia confirms a high concentration of regional investments, with the transportation sector dominating over the social sector. When summarizing data from the register of concession projects in the field of higher education (with a total cost of more than 211 billion rubles) a systemic contradiction was revealed between the potential of digital transformation and current dominance of infrastructure projects implemented primarily within the framework of Federal Law № 115-FZ dated July 21, 2005. Conclusion. In order to move from traditional infrastructure solutions to the model of digital adaptation in higher education, it is necessary to use a more flexible regulatory framework (Federal Law № 224-FZ dated July 13, 2015). However, de facto dominance of concession agreements (Federal Law №115-FZ dated July 21, 2005) limits the potential for digital transformation of universities. The advantages of Federal Law №224-FZ dated July 13, 2015 (work with intangible assets, performance assessment procedures) are not used. Going forward, it will be necessary to adapt the regulatory and methodological frameworks for public-private partnerships so that private resources could be integrated directly into research and educational process, rather than solely into the infrastructure component.
References
- V Minyekonomrazvitiya opredelili liderov po razvitiyu GChP sredi regionov [The Ministry of Economic Development identified the leaders in PPP development among the regions]. Available at: https://www.economy.gov.ru/material/news/v_minekonomrazvitiya_opredelili_liderov_po_razvitiyu_gchp_sredi_regionov.html (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Gafurova G.T. Finansovoe obespechenie mekhanizmov gosudarstvenno-chastnogo partnerstva v obrazovanii [Financial support for public-private partnership mechanisms in education]. Finansy i kredit, 2013, no. 43(571), pp. 61–71.
- Zbyshko B.G., Polyakov M.B. Finansy sotsial’no orientirovannykh nekommercheskikh organizatsii [Finances of socially oriented non-profit organizations]. Finansovaya ekonomika, 2021, no. 9, pp. 101–104.
- Zotov V.B., Baziyan K.N. Problemy razvitiya gosudarstvenno-chastnogo partnerstva v Rossiiskoi Federatsii [Problems of the development of public-private partnership in the Russian Federation]. Ekonomika, statistika i informatika. Vestnik UMO, 2015, no. 6, pp. 25–27.
- Zotov V.B., Terekhova K.O. Kratkii analiz praktik gosudarstvenno-chastnogo partnerstva v gorodakh [Brief analysis of public-private partnership practices in cities]. Vestnik MIRBIS , 2022, no. 3(31), pp. 41–46.
- Ibyatov F.M., Khmel’chenko E.G. Gosudarstvenno-chastnoe partnerstvo kak instrument v reshenii zadach sotsial’no-ekonomicheskogo razvitiya regionov i munitsipal’nykh obrazovanii [Public-private partnership as a tool for solving the tasks of socio-economic development of regions and municipalities]. Munitsipal’naya akademiya, 2019, no. 4, pp. 89–95.
- Kachkin D. Prezentatsiya vystupleniya na sessii «Evolyutsiya partnerstva: ot zarozhdeniya GChP do natsional’nogo standarta» [Presentation at the session “Evolution of partnership: from the origin of PPP to the national standard”]. Available at: https://www.pppcenter.ru/upload/iblock/505/5059b05a91c7915f8e36bfa04d64733f.pdf (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Kolchin A.A., Silina K.A. Impakt-investirovanie v predprinimatel’stve: istoriya voprosa [Impact investing in entrepreneurship: background]. In: Aktual’nye voprosy ekonomiki i finansov: sb. st. Mezh nauch.-prakt. konf. [Current Issues of Economics and Finance: Collected Papers of the International Scientific and Practical Conference]. Izhevsk, 2021, pp. 117–120.
- Polyakov M.B., Chuev S.V., Alekseeva I.I., Kutsevalova P.A. Mery gosudarstvennoi podderzhki deyatel’nosti molodezhnykh ob”edinenii v gorode Moskve [Measures of state support for youth associations in Moscow]. Fundamental’nye issledovaniya, 2024, no. 3, pp. 64–71.
- Minekonomrazvitiya: v 2025 godu ob”em investitsii v proekty GChP i kontsessii dostignet 500 mlrd rublei [The Ministry of Economic Development: in 2025, investment in PPP and concession projects will reach 500 billion rubles]. Available at: https://economy.gov.ru/material/news/minekonomrazvitiya_v_2025_godu_obem_investiciy_v_proekty_gchp_i_koncessiy_dostignet_500_mlrd_rubley.html (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Myshko Yu.A., Kolchin A.A. Novaya ekonomicheskaya politika i «novyi kurs»: nazad v budushchee [The New Economic Policy and the “New Deal”: back to the future]. Gumanitarnye issledovaniya Tsentral’noi Rossii , 2022, no. 3(24), pp. 16–24.
- Reestr kontsessionnykh soglashenii, zaklyuchennykh v sootvetstvii s Federal’nym zakonom ot 21 iyulya 2005 g. no. 115-FZ «O kontsessionnykh soglasheniyakh» (na 31 dekabrya 2024 goda) [Register of concession agreements concluded in accordance with Federal Law No. 115-FZ of July 21, 2005 “On Concession Agreements” (as of December 31, 2024)]. Available at: https://economy.gov.ru/material/file/download/dfbbe3b7458e2354ed83495389d35325/reestr_koncessionnyh_soglasheniy_122024.xlsx/ (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Reiting sub”ektov Rossiiskoi Federatsii po urovnyu razvitiya GChP za 2024 god [Ranking of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation by the level of PPP development for 2024]. Available at: https://www.economy.gov.ru/material/file/download/c35da2a561ed12ff8b27199065ea5ef3/reyting_subektov_rf_po_gchp_za_2024_god.pdf (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Romanova T.F., Meliksetyan S.N. Razvitie gosudarstvenno-chastnogo partnerstva v sfere vysshego obrazovaniya [Development of public-private partnership in higher education]. Ekonomicheskie nauki, 2018, no. 5(162), pp. 146–149.
- Rynok proektov gosudarstvenno-chastnogo partnerstva. Tendentsii, osnovnye igroki i perspektivy razvitiya do 2040 goda. Iyul’ 2025 / VEB. Natsional’nyi tsentr GChP [PPP project market. Trends, key players and development prospects until 2040. July 2025 / VEB. National PPP Center]. Available at: https://data.tedo.ru/publications/tedo-ppp-market-research-2025-2040.pdf (Accessed Date: 2025, Dec. 24).
- Ukolov V.F., Shabunevich O.V. Sovremennye trendy tsifrovoi transformatsii i upravlenie budushchim osnovnykh sfer zhiznedeyatel’nosti [Current trends in digital transformation and management of the future of the main spheres of life]. Vestnik MIRBIS , 2021, no. 3(27), pp. 21–27.
- Khmel’chenko E.G. Tekhnologii vnedreniya innovatsii v kompleksnuyu sistemu upravleniya predpriyatiem [Technologies for introducing innovations into an integrated enterprise management system]. Vestnik universiteta , 2017, no. 4, pp. 33–37.
- Cherkasova M.A., Khmel’chenko E.G., Akimova A.O., Cherkasov K.V. Tsifrovaya transformatsiya v nauke i obrazovanii: rol’ tsifrovoi kul’tury [Digital transformation in science and education: the role of digital culture]. Munitsipal’naya akademiya, 2024, no. 4, pp. 211–219.
- Shor I.M. Gosudarstvenno-chastnoe partnerstvo v rossiiskoi sisteme obrazovaniya: preimushchestva, problemy i napravleniya razvitiya [Public-private partnership in the Russian education system: advantages, problems and directions of development]. Vestnik Kemerovskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Ser. Politicheskie, sotsiologicheskie i ekonomicheskie nauki, 2022, no. 2(24), pp. 153–161.
About authors
- Zinchuk Galina M.
- Doctor of Economics Sciences, Professor, Department of State and Municipal Management, Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Russia, Moscow (zinchuk.gm@rea.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5493-1941)
- Okanov Andrey V.
- Post-Graduate Student, Department of State and Municipal Administration, Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Russia, Moscow (andreiokanov@mail.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-2049-2067)
Article link
Zinchuk G.M., Okanov A.V. Public-private partnership in higher education: implementation features under conditions of digital adaptation [Electronic resource] // Oeconomia et Jus. – 2026. – №3. P. 29-40. – URL: https://oecomia-et-jus.ru/en/single/2026/3/2/. DOI: 10.47026/2499-9636-2026-3-29-40.
Copyright holder: authors. License: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
