Sigma assistance to public procurement reform Marian Lemke, OECD/Sigma Brussels, 16 June 2011

Public Procurement Training for IPA beneficiaries ReSPA/Sigma December 2007 report (Training Needs Analysis) Sigma January 2009-April 2010 – preparation of a training manual and curriculum EC September 2010-end 2012 regional technical assistance project to implement the training scheme

ReSPA/Sigma 2007 Report Initiated by ReSPA in June 2007 Main objective – to design a strategy for capacity building in public procurement in Western Balkans (to identify training needs and propose a strategy and action plan for training) Close co-operation with future beneficiaries

2007 Report: Findings All countries in the region are in the process of building their public procurement systems in order to meet EU requirements and international good practice. To date the reform of public procurement systems has placed the main emphasis on ensuring legal and formal compliance with procurement regulations, while operational and practical aspects of public procurement have often been neglected. A redirection of focus towards support to contracting entities is therefore urgently needed. Several training activities have been undertaken in the region in the last few years, all with the support of technical assistance and twinning projects (financed mainly by the EU and USAID). All countries/entities in the region have established various administrative structures that are responsible, inter alia, for the organisation of a training system in public procurement. However, available resources are usually scarce.

2007 Report: Strategy proposed Expected outputs: Generic competency-based training materials (modules) in public procurement (in English); Seven sets (one for each country/entity) of national training materials in local languages (adapted to local legal systems); Network of 120-150 certified national trainers (group of community practice) in public procurement (15-25 per country/entity); National training strategies for public procurement training in all countries/entities; Capacity to implement, maintain and update the system.

2007 Report Implementation 2009-2010 Sigma Elaboration of generic training manual 2010-2012 EC (ELARG) Implementation of the training program in 8 IPA beneficiaries

Sigma training manual Key assumptions: Semi-final product, not to be used in countries Based on EC legislation and practice, to be localised in the future Designed for training for practitioners, not for policy-makers Focused on practice, not on law-books Comprehensive and detailed (1642 pages of narrative text + 1705 pages of hand-outs)

Outline Introduction and principles Organisation at level of contracting authorities Preparation of procurement Scope of application Conducting procurement process Review and integrity Contract management Module for economic operators

Outline Module B: Organisation at level of Contracting Authorities: B1. Contracting authorities’ internal regulation of the procurement process B2. Responsibility of the contracting authority for preparation and management of the procurement process B3. Role of the procurement officer B4. Role of the tendering committee B5. Contribution from external consultants and experts B6. Measuring performance in public procurement etc….

Format Manual for participants (5 weeks training) (Student’s pack) Trainer’s pack: Training programme (curriculum) Notes for trainers, answers to exercises PowerPoint presentations and handouts Collection of key EU documents on CD

Structure of each sub-module Student’s pack: Introduction Narrative Law Exercises Questions Slides Trainer’s pack: Answers to the exercises Answers to the questions curriculum  handouts

EC IPA TA project 2010 - 2012 Activity 1 Training of Trainers (ToT) Select national training institutions and candidate trainers (10-25 from each beneficiary) in co-operation with public procurement offices/agencies Deliver Training of Trainers (ToT) course in two stages for about 150-180 participants from the region (total of five weeks) Activity 2 Support for training at national level (individually for each beneficiary) Develop national training strategies Customise training modules (translation + adaptation to local legal system), including an online course supported by a help-desk Publish customised training modules in hard copy and on-line Support PPOs/trainers for one year of operation Activity 3 – Accreditation of national trainers Certify national trainers following an observation period

Sigma – assistance to public procurement reform in Armenia 2008 – gap analysis of Armenian legislation and practice 2009 – strategy adopted 2009-2010 – legislation drafting January 2011 – new law in force (EU procedures + decentralisation + new institutions) 2011 – 2012 Need for massive training

SIGMA – Public Procurement Manual for ENP countries Based on the IPA manual Same approach and format Updated Tailored for the ENP context EC regional project to implement in ENP countries ?