ALA’s Anti-Corruption Proposal in the Field of Public Procurement was accepted

The action plan of the State Financial Management System Reform Strategy 2019-2023, approved by the RA Government Decision No. 1716-L of 28/10/2019, envisages the improvement of the procurement planning system, ensuring that the same needs of the bodies are met with the same procurement items with the same estimated prices.

The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Armenia informs that within the framework of the implementation of the mentioned event, the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Armenia plans to develop and submit to the Government of the Republic of Armenia a draft legal act regulating the process.

In this regard, we would like to inform that this proposal was accepted as a result of the advocacy activities carried out by the Armenian Lawyers’ Association. In particular, the Bizprotect Reporting Platform, which is run by the organization, has repeatedly received notices that a number of state-owned customers are specifying the specifications of the purchase subject for specific companies in order to ensure their victory, as a result of which contracts are always signed with the same company.

It has therefore been suggested that the competent authority set certain guidelines for the specifications of a particular group of goods for the purpose of the subject matter of the purchase, which will exclude double comments on the characteristics of the subject matter.

In order to discuss the proposal, ALA representatives have repeatedly met with Sergey Shahnazaryan, Head of the Procurement Policy Department of the RA Ministry of Finance.

It should be added that the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Armenia, emphasizing the involvement of public units representing the interests of both civil society and economic entities in the mentioned process, before 10/04/2010 was collecting through e-mails and/or written suggestions for discussing them and including in the draft.