A grant of $3.6 million provided by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association under the Multilateral Trust Fund Programme ‘Growth, Sustainability and Opportunities for Prosperity in Moldova’ (M-GROW) is intended to create the necessary structures and digitise the relevant platforms.
The advantages of centralisation – transparent use of budget resources, unified approaches and cost reduction – are being discussed by World Bank experts at working sessions with stakeholders organised by the Ministry of Finance in the last weeks of June. The consultations are mainly focused on defining the institutional and operational framework for the reform, which was announced by the authorities five years ago.
The centralisation of the procurement functions of ministries, departments and second-tier local government bodies will take place through the creation of a Central Procurement Authority (CPA), by standardising procedures for similar types of procurement and reducing transaction costs. It is expected to operate on a self-financing basis, receiving commission payments from customers.
On the other hand, it is possible that ministries will organise CPAs based on their staffing schedules, transforming their departments to perform centralised procurement functions on an industry-by-industry basis. In that case, those departments or state institutions that do not have such capabilities will use the relevant services.
The central procurement office will be responsible for collecting data on the centralised needs of state bodies, planning and implementing procurement, concluding contracts and their execution, including acceptance and, if necessary, examination of deliveries within the framework of the established procedures. The Ministry of Finance does not rule out the creation of a system for outsourcing procurement functions and centralising procurement through the treasury payment system for approved transactions.
The model chosen by the government will be announced after consultations are completed.
