INTRODUCTION

A partnership is an arrangement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. Since humans are social beings, partnerships between individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments, and varied combinations thereof, have always been and remain commonplace. In the most frequently associated instance of the term, a partnership is formed between one or more businesses in which partners (owners) co-labor to achieve and share profits and losses (see business partners). Partnerships exist within, and across, sectors. Non-profit, religious, and political organizations may partner together to increase the likelihood of each achieving their mission and to amplify their reach. In what is usually called an alliance, governments may partner to achieve their national interests, sometimes against allied governments who hold contrary interests, such as occurred during World War II and the Cold War. In education, accrediting agencies increasingly evaluate schools by the level and quality of their partnerships with other schools and a variety of other entities across societal sectors. Partnerships also occur at personal levels, such as when two or more individuals agree to domicile together, while other partnerships are not only personal but private, known only to the involved parties. Partnerships present the involved parties with special challenges that must be navigated unto agreement. Overarching goals, levels of give-and-take, areas of responsibility, lines of authority and succession, how success is evaluated and distributed, and often a variety of other factors must all be negotiated. Once agreement is reached, the partnership is typically enforceable by civil law, especially if well documented. Partners who wish to make their agreement

affirmatively explicit and enforceable typically draw up Articles of Partnership. It is common for information about formally partnered entities to be made public, such as through a press release, a newspaper ad, or public records laws. Governmentally recognized partnerships may enjoy special benefits in tax policies. Among developed countries, for example, business partnerships are often favored over corporations in taxation policy, since dividend taxes only occur on profits before they are distributed to the partners. However, depending on the partnership structure and the jurisdiction in which it operates, owners of a partnership may be exposed to greater personal liability than they would as shareholders of a corporation. In such countries, partnerships are often regulated via anti-trust laws, so as to inhibit monopolistic practices and foster free market competition. Enforcement of the laws, however, is often widely variable. Domestic partnerships recognized by governments typically enjoy tax benefits, as well. The key elements in such partnerships are: The different types of partner, their roles and expectations; Partnership principles; The types of partnership; Stages in the partnership process.

PARTNERS- THEIR BASIC ROLES,CONTRIBUTION AND OBJECTIVES

The actual combination of partners in a UNIDO-business partnership will depend on the character and objectives of the partnership. The main partner categories and their basic roles are:

Private enterprise
Production of goods and services for profit; Creation of wealth and job opportunities.

The public sector

Creation of a framework for economic, political and social development; Formulation and enforcement of laws and regulations, including international agreements.

Civil society
Common interest issues (social cohesion, environmental protection, human rights etc.);

Factors in successful partnerships

The following factors are essential for a successful partnership: Initiating a partnership Shared values; Trust: credibility of the partners and acceptance of different organizational and national cultures; A common goal that makes cooperation between the private and public sector desirable; Selection of capable and accountable partners; Involvement of top management; Involvement of all relevant other actors; A jointly developed strategic vision; Capable leaders of the partnership process; Agreement on initial contributions and commitment from target beneficiaries. Managing a partnership and realizing its goals

 Good project management Trust, as a result of good personal relations, and transparent decision making and information flows Flexibility in tackling unexpected challenges Realistic funding and time frames A fair share of benefits and risks for all partners Long-term commitment and continuity

TYPES OF PARTNERSHIP
Broad determinants of the character of a partnership include two main dimensions: Industry Sector Life-Cycle Stage Type of industrial activity (e.g. car, textile or telecommunication industry) Place in the industrial life cycle (innovation, maturity, decline - this will have a major impact on the stability or dynamism of the business environment in which the partnership operates). Time Frame Time perspective of the main business partners for achieving the envisaged objectives Complexity of the envisaged activities (for example: joint product development versus simple process improvements); The range of actors needed to make the partnership work (in complex partnerships, it may be necessary to distinguish between an inner circle of key partners and partners who cooperate on an ad-hoc basis)

Operational, short term partnership

High degree of maturity or even decline with a certain well defined structure

 Usage of standardized technologies and business procedures within an established industry sector. Partnership actors are easily interchangeable.

Medium-term partnership
Partners are not replaceable at short notice. The industry is based on established technologies within a known business environment. Trust building among partners.

Long-term partnership
Partnership follows a work-in progress approach, within not established industry structures. Flexibility and long- term trust building. There are two types of partnerships under the Law: (i) general partnership, in which all partners are jointly liable for all debts and obligations of the firm. (ii) limited partnership which consists of at least a general partner who is liable for all debts and obligations of the firm, and one or more limited partners who are not responsible for the firms debts and obligations beyond the amount they have contributed to the partnership.

PARTNERSHIP AS A PROCESS
All individual activities have a number of elements in common which play a role throughout: Conceptual: Sustainability.

Organizational: Leadership and management Communication. Operational: Balancing short-term and long-term achievements Instruments for partnership building. A successful partnership is a learning process. It can be visualized as an upward spiral consisting of discrete activactivities held together by a common vision, welldeveloped tools and management capacities, transparent communication and trust.

THE INDIAN PARTNERSHIP ACT, 193

The Indian Partnership Act, 1932 is an act enacted by the Parliament of India to regulate partnership firms in India. It received the assent of the Governor-General on 8 April 1932 and came into force on 1 October 1932. Before the enactment of this act, partnerships were governed by the provisions of the Indian Contract Act. The act is administered through the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. The act is not applicable to Limited Liability Partnerships, since they are governed by the Limited liability Partnership Act, 2008. Section 2 of the act defines, (a) an "act of a firm" means any act or omission by all the partners, or by any partner or agent of the firm which gives rise to a right enforceable by or against the firm; (b) "business" includes every trade, occupation and profession;

(c) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; (c-1) "Registrar" means the Registrar of Firms appointed under sub-section (1) of section 57 and includes the Deputy Registrar of Firms and Assistant Registrar of Firms appointed under sub-section (2) of that section; (d) "third party" used in relation to a firm or to a partner therein means any person who is not a partner in the firm; and (e) expressions used but not defined in this Act and defined in the Indian Contract Act, 1872, shall have the meanings assigned to them in that Act. Partnership refers to an agreement between persons to share their profits or losses arising on account of actions carried by all or one of them acting on behalf of all. The persons who have entered such an agreement are called partners and give their collective business a name, which is necessarily their firm-name. This relation between partners arises out of a contract or an agreement, which means a husband and wife carrying on a business or members of a Hindu undivided family re not into partnership. The share of profits received by any individual from the firm, money received by a lender of money, salary received by a worker or a servant, annuity received by a widow or a child of a deceased partner, does not make them a partner of the firm. According to section 4 of the Partnership Act of 1932, which applies in both India, "Partnership is defined as the relation between two or more persons who have agreed to share the profits according to their ratio of business run by all or any one of them acting for all". This definition superseded the previous definition given in section 239 of Indian Contract Act 1872 as Partnership is the relation which subsists between persons who have agreed to combine their property, labour, skill in some

business, and to share the profits thereof between them. The 1932 definition added the concept of mutual agency. A partnership firm is not a legal entity apart from the partners constituting it. It has limited identity for the purpose of tax law as per section 4 of the Partnership Act of 1932.