PUBLIC PROCUREMENT STRATEGY FOR THE POST-CONFLICT TERRITORIES

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the need to develop and approve a Public Procurement Strategy for the Donetsk region, which will envisage the use of procurement not only for current purchase of goods, works or services, but also for implementation of additional ‘horizontal’ goals in creation of employment opportunities, environmental protection and support for small and medium-sized enterprises, taking into account the peculiarities of post-conflict recovery processes. It is emphasized that currently there are no strategic approaches to the use of public procurement in solving complex problems of Donetsk region development, which is manifested in the following: 1) strategic development goals of Donetsk region are not related to public procurement, i. e., no connection has been established between them; 2) no specific goals have been set for the public procurement itself, and there is no vision for the development of procurement in the Donetsk region. It is suggested that these problems could be solved by the Public Procurement Strategy for the Donetsk region, which would envisage goals for the strategic use of public procurement. It is proved that this Strategy will: 1) promote the recognition and understanding by contracting authorities of public procurement as a potential means of addressing important issues of regional or city development and strengthen the role of procurement in these processes; 2) allow business entities to better plan their activities; 3) ensure consistency of strategic goals of the region’s development with national priorities, including sustainable development. The vision of public procurement development is defined. The goals of the Donetsk Region Development Strategy for the period up to 2027, in the implementation of which public procurement can play an important role, are defined as well. Additionally, the goals of the draft Public Procurement Strategy are coordinated with the Donetsk Region Development Strategy.