Emergence of Sustainable Public Procurement as a Strategic Instrument

Abstract

AbstractTraditionally, public procurement focuses purely on economic efficiency, with little regard for the impacts of procurement decisions on the environment and society. However, with the rise in awareness about the role of consumers in preventing environmental degradations and broader acceptance of the Stakeholder Theory of corporate governance, governments began to lead by example and use their purchasing power to advance sustainable consumption and production patterns. Furthermore, the increased emphasis on the “Value for Money” concept in public buying motivated reforms in public procurement frameworks worldwide and enabled public procurement to emerge as one of the preferred strategic tools to achieve broader national objectives. Sustainable procurement leverages the market economy principle—competition and innovation—to take advantage of the market potential of providing sustainable solutions to transform the market and achieve broader public goals.The chapter commences with a discussion on factors that led to a change in perception about procurement, from a mere transactional, administrative function, to a critical demand-side policy instrument to achieve broader sustainability goals. Then, it traces the evolution of sustainable procurement (SP) as a tool to promote eco-efficiency to its emergence as a tool to promote SDGs. It highlights the importance of linking sustainable procurement objectives with organizational and national goals to align resources and efforts.KeywordsSustainable public procurementGreen public procurementValue for moneyPublic procurement as a strategic toolFunctional and horizontal objectives in public procurement