Competition and integrity in public procurement - Slavica Joković

This book examines the issues and challenges raised by anti-competitive practice in public procurement and lack of integrity. It will help the reader to solve its problems concerning lack of knowledge, information and experience in the area of competition and public procurement. Furthermore, it will help concerning appropriate measures for prevention of corruption, as well as measures aimed at fighting bid rigging in public procurement and enhancing competition.

The objective of this book is to promote integrity in public procurement as a precondition for fair competition on the one side, and sustainable public procurement, including environmental and social goals, on the other side.

In order to respond to these challenges, appropriate public procurement measures should be considered, with aim of increasing efficiency of public spending, integrity and competition, facilitating in particular the participation of SMEs in public procurement, which is essential to proper and efficient implementation of public procurement procedures..

The book analyses the role of competition and integrity in the public procurement policy, in view of new EU public procurement legislative framework, and particular country case of Serbia.

Considering a wide impact of public procurement on the whole economy, and harmful consequences of anti-competitive practice to public resources, this book reviews some public procurement rules in the EU Directive on Public Procurement and the Law on Public Procurement in Serbia, intended to foster competition. Furthermore, it focuses on the provisions concerning transparency and integrity in the area of public procurement, as well as the criteria for award of the public contracts, and small and medium sized enterprises (SME) consideration in the public procurement policy.

This book elaborates the main characteristics of anti-competitive practice in public procurement, including bid rigging, its forms, objectives, and consequences, as well as various features of the industry, products and services that tend to facilitate collusion in public tenders. It also describes the most common indicators of bid rigging in order to detect and prevent anti-competitive collusion.

Furthermore, it examines the rules regarding integrity and transparency in the area of public procurement that should be ensured through appropriate anti-corruption measure, control, reporting and internal liability, which contribute to the fight against anti-competitive practice. Integrity and transparency of the public procurement system, embracing access to procurement information and ethics, should ensure its proper functioning to avoid any irregularities in procurement procedures and practices.

Afterwards, the book covers issues concerning rules for the award of public procurement contracts, including contract award criteria, with particular emphasis on qualitative aspects. Especially, as a specific illustration of these deliberations, the criterion of qualification and experience of staff assigned to performing the contract is examined, as well as an example of relevant case-law of the Court of Justice. In addition, it investigates issues of integrating SMEs consideration into public procurement policy, in order to increase its participation in the public procurement market.

The book also highlights appropriate measures that should be applied in order to fight against anti-competitive practice in public procurement, which concern proper implementation of relevant legislative provisions, as well as proposed practical measures to increase participation of economic operators in the public procurement procedures. Finally, last chapter analyses relevant opportunities, and legal and institutional framework of public procurement and public-private partnerships in Serbia, as a country case.

This book can be used as an useful manual for public procurement practitioners and officials working in the area of competition. It is of great value not only for lawyers, economists, specialists in purchasing practice, researchers and students, but to a much wider audience which recognizes a strong potential of public procurement to stimulate investment and new technologies, as well as to boost the whole economy.