Similarly to other European countries, Estonia is committed to sustainable development, recognising that public procurement has the potential to support important developments for the state. According to the Minister of Finance Mart Võrklaev, the goal is to carry out more strategic public procurements in the future, which support environmental, social and economic policies. ‘One of the top priorities of the government is to increase the innovation capacity of the Estonian economy and encourage socially responsible, green and climate-friendly business activities. Here, the so-called innovation procurements represent a groundbreaking opportunity,’ the minister said.
‘Until now, we have viewed public procurement as a procedure for acquiring goods, services or construction work at the lowest possible price; however, the joint purchasing power of procurement holds great potential for achieving other objectives as well. The organisers of procurement play a decisive role here, as they can drive change and innovation through procurement – the state itself must be a prudent contracting authority. Contracting authorities must be well-informed about the new approach, including the expectations and possibilities it entails,’ Võrklaev pointed out.
Estella Põllu, Deputy Head of the Public Procurement and State Aid Department at the Ministry of Finance, stated that according to the plan, contracting authorities should be able to tap into international experience and expertise in procurement planning as early as next year. ‘In order for us to guide entrepreneurs towards offering the society more environmentally friendly, socially impactful and innovative solutions, we, as both the state and contracting authority, must set an example. On the other hand, as entrepreneurs gain experience in Estonian public procurement, they will have the opportunity to competitively offer the same products and services in other markets as well,’ Põllu explained.
This week, representatives of the OECD and the European Commission are visiting Estonia, where an opening seminar is taking place to introduce the project’s activities. As part of the co-operation project, the current situation will be mapped, an action plan will be developed, recommendations for conducting strategic procurement will be given, a competence model will be created and training for supervisors will be provided. Pilot projects in co-operation with Estonian contracting authorities are conducted in the final stage, on the basis of which guidance materials will be prepared for carrying out public procurements that contribute to positive societal changes.
The objective of the project ‘Promoting the Uptake of Strategic Public Procurement in Estonia through Professionalising the Public Procurement Workforce’ is to assist Estonia in promoting and increasing the uptake of strategic public procurement. This allows the state to increase its competitiveness and contribute to the promotion of sustainable management and social equity through public procurement.
The project is funded by the Technical Support Instrument of the European Union.
