1. The Accession Process to EU
ROMANIAN PERSPECTIVE –
Gheorghe Cazan
“The New Public Procurement Procedures and Instruments” Ankara – 5-6 February 2008

2. The Reform Strategy of the Romanian Public Procurement System
Systemic problems in 2001 – 2004:
Legislative overlapping and a blurry distribution of competencies of public institutions involved in the management of public procurement system;
Insufficient staff within the institutional structure having the role of regulating and monitoring;
Weak capacity of the contracting authorities;
Inefficient mechanism to collect information;
Slow and less effective remedies system.

3. Two Main Goals Improvement of the legislative framework
Strengthening the implementing capacity
A national strategy has been approved in 2005 – Government Decision 901/2005

4. Improvement of the legislative framework (1)
The national public procurement legislation transposes the European legislation consisting of:
Directive 2004/17/EC – “utilities sector”
Directive 2004/18/EC – “classic sector”
Directive 89/665/EEC – “remedies for classical sector”
Directive 92/13/EEC – “remedies for utilities sector”

5. Improvement of the legislative framework (2)
Screening the entire legislation in order to avoid legislative overlapping
Regulating both procurement in the “classic sector” and procurement in the “utilities sector”
Keeping an unitary vision both for “traditional” and “electronic” procurement
Changing the old remedies system
New vision regarding concession

6. Strengthening the implementing capacity
The main ways to ensure the strengthening of the implementing capacity at the level of the contracting authorities :
appropriate allocation of human and material resources for the procurement units within the contracting authorities;
easy access to methodological consultancy
appropriate training tools and support materials (information bulletins, guidebooks)
participation in periodical training programs of staff involved in the public procurement activity.

7. Who was involved ? Interministerial Working Group:
National Authority for Regulating and Monitoring Public Procurement
Ministry of Public Finance
Ministry of Transport and Public Works
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Communications and IT
Ministry of European Integration

8. How to do ?
Internal working group within National Authority for Regulating and Monitoring Public Procurement
Support from SIGMA
Consultation with civil society
Permanent consultation with European Commission
- meetings in Bucharest and Brussels
- PPL draft 1, PPL draft 2, …
Phare support for training
Ensuring the continuity of the teams involved in the work

9. Political support
Political determination at the level of the Government
Lobby and “fights” in Parliament
RED FLAG
YELLOW FLAG
GREEN FLAG
Country Report in September 2005 – Red Flag
Country Report in May 2006 – Green Flag

10. National Legislation Primary legislation:
- Emergency Government Ordinance no. 34/2006 approved by the Law 337/2006
Secondary legislation:
- Government Decision no. 925/ application norms for “traditional” procurement
- Government Decision no. 1660/ applications norms for “electronic” procurement
- Government Decision no. 71/2007 – application norms for concession of works and services

11. PRINCIPLES Nondiscrimination Equal treatment Mutual recognition
Transparency
Proportionality
Efficient usage of the public funds
Assuming responsibility

12. Scope of PPL (1) Contracting authorities
Any public institution established at central, regional and local level;
Any body governed by public law, other than public institution, having legal personality, which have been established for the specific purpose of meeting needs in the general interest, not having an industrial or commercial character and which:
It is financed for the most part by a public institution or by a body governed by public law; or
It is subordinated or subordinated by a public institution or by a body governed by public law; or
More than a half of the members of the managerial board or supervisory body is appointed by a public institution or by a body governed by public law.

13. Scope of PPL (2)
Associations formed by one ore more contracting authorities;
Any public undertaking which carries out one or more of the relevant activities in the utilities sectors (water, energy, transport, postal services);
Any other entity which is not public undertaking but which carries out one or more of the relevant activities in the utilities sectors, based on a special or exclusive right

14. Awarding Procedures Open procedure Restricted procedure
Competitive Dialog
Negotiation procedure
- with prior publication
- without prior publication
Design Contest
Request for Quotations

15. Other Possibilities Framework agreement Electronic auctions
Dynamic purchasing system

16. Qualification and Selection Criteria
Personal Situation
Capacity of Exerting the Professional Activity
Economic and Financial Situation
Technical and/or Professional Capacity
Quality Assurance Standards
Environment Protection Standards

17. Awarding Criteria The most economically advantageous tender
The lowest price

18. Transparency Publication of the notices
Rules have to be known before starting to apply the awarding procedures
Public procurement file is considered information of public interest
access to the information is restricted only in case of the classified information or protected by an intellectual property right, according to the law
Publication of the notices

19. Notices Intention Notice Participation Notice Awarding Notice Where:
- European Union Official Journal
- Electronic System for Public Procurement

20. Institutional System of Public Procurement
National Authority for Regulating and Monitoring Public Procurement (NARMPP)
National Council for Solving Complains (NCSC)

21. N.A.R.M.P.P (1) Set up in July, 2005 Legal base:
- GEO no. 74/2005 and GD 895/2005
Total number of staff: 80
Internal structure:
- Directorate for Policies and Regulations
- Directorate for Operational Development
- Directorate for Monitoring and Surveillance

22. N.A.R.M.P.P (2) Role: Main functions: regulating the legal framework
Conception, promotion and implementation of the public procurement policy
Main functions:
regulating the legal framework
contact point with the EC for public procurement matters
counseling the contracting authorities
help-desk
elaboration of operational tools (guides, brochures)
organizing and sustaining training activities
monitoring – from the statistical point of view – the awarding of public procurement contracts
controlling certain cases and applying sanctions

23. N.C.S.C (1) Set up in September, 2006
Independent institution with an administrative-jurisdictional activity
quasi-judicial body
Legal base:
- Chapter IX from GEO no. 34/2005
Total number of staff: 21 (without administrative personnel)
Structure: 7 independent panels in charge with resolving the complains

24. N.C.S.C (2)
A person who consider itself injured in one of his/her rights or legitimate interests by the means of an act of the contracting authority, has the right to contest that act: - by administrative-jurisdictional way – N.C.S.C. - or, in front of the Court Compensations are required only by means of juridical actions, in front of the Court

25. N.C.S.C (3)
Automatic suspension in case of submitting the claim to the N.C.S.C.
The Council will solve the complaint in 10 working days; in duly justified cases, the solving term of the complaint may be extended with 20 days
The Council ‘s Decision mandatory and may be attacked at the Court of Appeal

26. After one year in EU 9300 participation notices published in JOUE
99,9% of the notices has been sent by electronic means
29000 participation notices published in ESPP
invitation for request for quotation published in ESPP
70% of the total value of the contracts – open procedure
5000 claims submitted to NCSC (3,1 % of the procedures)
3000 people trained (65% of the staff has been participated in at least one seminar for public procurement in the last 3 years)

27. Perception of Contracting Authorities (1)
How much do you think that the public procurement procedures lead to the following effects:
Reducing the cost of the products/services/works ?
Increasing the quality of the products/services/works ?
Reducing the suspicions regarding the award of the contracts ?
Increasing the competition ?

28. Perception of Contracting Authorities (2)

29. Thank you