Researchers continue to theorise public private partnerships (PPPs) as an innovative means of unlocking public sector investment gaps, yet their contribution towards improved public service delivery has sustainably remained low mainly because of poor public private partnership (PPP) understanding and application. This study utilises extant conceptual and theoretical studies through content analysis to provide a more concrete understanding of the PPP concept and philosophy for their effective application. The study developed a list of common PPP defining features (e.g. partnership, longterm projects and contracts, incomplete contracts, function specific tasks) and eight PPP perspectives (i.e. procurement management, urban regeneration, infrastructure, policy, moral regeneration, financing arrangements, language game, development) for better understanding of the PPP concept. Importantly, the study introduces a new and overarching