世界发展银行-Moldova---Assessment-of-the-Public-Procurement-System_151页_1mb

Summary of the Public Procurement System Assessment in Moldova

Core Content

This report presents the findings and recommendations of an assessment of Moldova's public procurement system, conducted by the World Bank in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and other national stakeholders. The assessment was based on the Methodology for Assessing Procurement Systems (MAPS), a tool developed by the World Bank and OECD, and aimed to evaluate the system's legal, institutional, operational, and accountability aspects. The objective was to support the Government in reforming the public procurement system to enhance efficiency, transparency, and integrity, in line with international standards and Moldova's commitments under the Association Agreement with the European Union and the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA).

Main Objectives of the Assessment

• Assess the quality and effectiveness of Moldova's public procurement system.
• Identify strengths and weaknesses, and benchmark against international best practices.
• Highlight gaps that negatively affect the system's performance.
• Help the Government prioritize reform efforts to achieve balanced accountability, effective risk governance, and integration with public finance management.
• Provide comparative analysis between the Government procurement system and that of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs).
• Support the development of an action plan for continuous improvement of the system.
• Conduct spend analysis to improve efficiency and reduce costs in public procurement.

Key Findings and Recommendations

Pillar I: Legal, Regulatory and Policy Framework

• Findings: The primary public procurement law is aligned with international standards, but secondary legislation is outdated and contradictory. The e-procurement system does not fully support the procedures outlined in the law. Standard documentation is overly detailed and not user-friendly.
• Recommendations:
  • Continue amending the primary procurement legislation and update all secondary legislation accordingly.
  • Ensure the e-procurement system fully complies with the public procurement law.
  • Simplify the form and content of standard documentation.
  • Require all public procurement documentation to be published and freely accessible on a central website in a machine-readable format.

Pillar II: Institutional Framework and Management Capacity

• Findings: Procurement planning and execution are mostly annual, with limited flexibility. There are too many public procurement authorities, many with insufficient skills and resources. Procurement is often managed by "working groups" rather than dedicated units. There is a lack of recognition of public procurement as a formal profession.
• Recommendations:
  • Align procurement planning with a longer time horizon and adjust budget and disbursement regulations to enable year-round procurement.
  • Review and categorize all public enterprises to determine the applicable procurement rules.
  • Replace "working groups" with dedicated administrative units or assign experienced staff to handle procurement as a primary duty.
  • Recognize public procurement as a profession in the official classification of occupations.

Pillar III: Procurement Operations and Market Practices

• Findings: Data on procurement practices is limited, making it difficult to assess skill gaps and improve training. Some enterprises may avoid participation due to perceived barriers. Contracting authorities lack adequate skills in planning, tender evaluation, and contract management.
• Recommendations:
  • Collect more detailed and reliable data on actual procurement practices.
  • Analyze the supply market from the perspective of public procurement to inform economic policies.
  • Improve guidance materials and training for contracting authorities.
  • Enhance the understanding of firm characteristics (e.g., SMEs, non-local firms) and their participation in procurement.

Pillar IV: Accountability, Integrity and Transparency

• Findings: Civil society organizations face challenges in accessing data and participating in consultations. There are overlapping roles among supervisory bodies, leading to inconsistencies. Internal audit is underutilized in public procurement. Fraud and corruption prevention mechanisms are in place but not effectively implemented.
• Recommendations:
  • Allow civil society to effectively monitor the procurement cycle and provide training.
  • Harmonize the roles and responsibilities of supervisory institutions.
  • Intensify the use of internal audit, especially in public procurement.
  • Refocus audit on outcomes and performance, and ensure recommendations are followed up.
  • Review and improve the system for prohibiting economic operators from participating in procurement and increase transparency of past performance data.

Conclusion

The assessment highlights the need for comprehensive reform of Moldova's public procurement system, focusing on legal harmonization, institutional strengthening, operational efficiency, and greater transparency and accountability. The recommendations emphasize the importance of improving the e-procurement system, enhancing the procurement profession, and ensuring data transparency to support informed decision-making and policy development. The report also includes a spend analysis to further improve cost efficiency and service delivery.