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Public procurement related expenditure is approximately fifty to seventy percent of the national budget of developing countries and accounts for almost a third of the gross domestic product. Cognizant of the significant funds committed in public procurement, the quest for value for money is critical. This study sought to determine the effect of procurement practices on value for money in State Corporations in Kenya. Specifically, the study investigated the effect of procurement planning, supplier sourcing, supplies management and E-procurement on value for money. Data collected from 87 State Corporations in Kenya was used in this study. The results of the study indicated that procurement planning, supplier sourcing, supplies management and e-procurement positively and significantly affect the value for money in state corporations in Kenya. The study concluded that proper procurement practices positively and significantly affect the value for money in state corporations in Kenya. The findings of this study contributes to literature by providing an empirical examination on the impact of procurement practices and value for money from a developing country perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governance is unarguably the largest human enterprise. It involves interactions with diverse stakeholders, including private contractors, for procurements and delivery of public goods and services to the population through the invitation of tenders and bids for auction. Procurement can often lead to disputes given the diverse purposes of such contracts, and the nature of the contracting entities. Disputes arise in three stages: notification, allotment and performance. Private contractors are driven by profit, while the State follows its sovereign and public law obligations. In such high-stakes engagements, effective and efficient dispute resolution is not just desirable but necessary. This paper analyses the legal regime governing public procurement contracts in India, with special emphasis on the relevant dispute resolution mechanisms available. It outlines the existing international law regime on public procurement to suggest arbitration as an effective dispute resolution mechanism. The paper analyses the WTO Model, the UNCITRAL Model Law on Public Procurement, and the EU Law, to reconcile the issues particular to the Indian context, especially those related to dispute resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the critical success factors (CSFs): organizational e-procurement competency, change management program, top management support, end-user training, supplier involvement, and e-procurement implementation strategy, that best support the management implementation of e-procurement initiatives in the Nigerian upstream sector of the oil and gas firms were examined. The study adopted a survey research design. The population of the study consists of all staff of the procurement entities of the respective Nigerian upstream sector of the oil and gas firms. A total of 232 copies of structured questionnaire were administered through convenience sampling technique while 229 copies were successfully retrieved. The model framework was estimated using the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) technique through the use of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 22. It was revealed that all the CSFs examined have positive significant relationship with management implementation of e-procurement initiatives in the Nigerian upstream sector of the oil and gas firms. It was also revealed that organizational e-procurement competency confirmed the main factor that best support the management implementation of eprocurement initiative as displayed by the staff of the selected Nigerian upstream sector of the oil and gas firms. The study recommends that management should make end-users of new technology see change as a necessary ingredient for the growth of the organization because things cannot continuously be done the same way over time. Thus, top management support is needed in ensuring that end-users are trained with the requisite skills in the use of eprocurement practices. Also, management should build good business synergy, sensitization, confidence, and create opportunities for suppliers to offer their contributions/feedbacks in terms of necessary changes, issues, and concerns in developing and maintaining supplier catalogues/workability of the proposed e-procurement initiative. This will allow management to monitor areas for improvement and adjustment of e-procurement practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to rely on a diverse pool of suppliers, besides achieving cost effectiveness. Common wisdom, however, holds that these two aims are in conflict. We explore a model of dual sourcing and propose complementing a share auction with affirmative action to create an endogenous set-aside for a high-cost supplier. In our model more intensive affirmative action strengthens the targeted provider. This has the potential to level the playing field, inducing more competitive procurement overall. Our main result provides a condition under which the endogenous set-aside not only guarantees a very substantial share for the high-cost supplier, but also reduces the buyer's provision cost compared to a standard auction. We also illustrate how our approach can help reducing the severity and likelihood of health product shortages, such as those occurred during the COVID-19 outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public procurement is a crucial function of governments, accounting for a significant part of their expenditure. As such, ensuring the efficiency, sustainability, and integrity of public procurement processes is key to optimizing the use of public funds. This literature review examines existing research on public procurement, focusing on its impact on budgets, efficiency, and sustainability. The review highlights the importance of legislation and public policy in shaping procurement practices and identifies corruption as a significant challenge to achieving efficiency, sustainability, and budgetary impact. The examination also highlights various elements that can enhance the effectiveness of public procurement procedures, such as electronic procurement systems, involvement of stakeholders, and the incorporation of sustainability criteria. Overall, this literature review provides insight into the complexity of public procurement and makes recommendations for improving its efficiency, sustainability, and budgetary impact. The findings suggest that strengthening legislation, promoting transparency, and incorporating sustainability criteria into public procurement processes are essential to optimize the use of public funds and to ensure that public procurement is a tool for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite high pneumococcal disease and economic burden in Indonesia and interest to introduce pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), there were challenges in establishing a comprehensive strategy to accelerate and enable the introduction in country in the early 2010s. Starting in 2017, Clinton Health Access Initiative and partners supported the government of Indonesia with evidence-based decision-making and implementation support for introducing PCV into the routine immunization program. Indonesia has since accelerated PCV roll out, with nationwide reach achieved in 2022. On the path to PCV introduction, several challenges were observed that impacted decision making on whether and on how to optimally roll out PCV, resulting in significant introduction delays; including (1) a complex country context with a devolved government structure, fragmented domestic funding streams, and an imminent transition out of major immunization donor (Gavi) support; (2) strong preference to use domestically sourced products, with limited experience accessing global pooled procurement mechanism including for vaccines; and (3) concerns around programmatic feasibility and sustainability. This case study documents key insights into the challenges experienced and how those were systematically addressed to accelerate new vaccine introduction in Indonesia, with support from local and global stakeholders over time. The learnings would be beneficial for other countries yet to introduce critical new vaccines, in particular those with similar archetype as Indonesia e.g., middle-income countries with domestic manufacturing capacity and/or countries recently transitioning out of Gavi support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite high pneumococcal disease and economic burden in Indonesia and interest to introduce pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), there were challenges in establishing a comprehensive strategy to accelerate and enable the introduction in country in the early 2010s. Starting in 2017, Clinton Health Access Initiative and partners supported the government of Indonesia with evidence-based decision-making and implementation support for introducing PCV into the routine immunization program. Indonesia has since accelerated PCV roll out, with nationwide reach achieved in 2022. On the path to PCV introduction, several challenges were observed that impacted decision making on whether and on how to optimally roll out PCV, resulting in significant introduction delays; including (1) a complex country context with a devolved government structure, fragmented domestic funding streams, and an imminent transition out of major immunization donor (Gavi) support; (2) strong preference to use domestically sourced products, with limited experience accessing global pooled procurement mechanism including for vaccines; and (3) concerns around programmatic feasibility and sustainability. This case study documents key insights into the challenges experienced and how those were systematically addressed to accelerate new vaccine introduction in Indonesia, with support from local and global stakeholders over time. The learnings would be beneficial for other countries yet to introduce critical new vaccines, in particular those with similar archetype as Indonesia e.g., middle-income countries with domestic manufacturing capacity and/or countries recently transitioning out of Gavi support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The direct reliance of humans on and their interactions with freshwater ecosystems in the Lower Mekong Basin have given rise to parasitic infections, which is particularly prevalent in Northeast Thailand where raw fish consumption is practiced. This study examined the interactions between environments, ecosystem (dis-)services, human raw fish consumption habits, and raw fish dish sharing on liver fluke infection risk. Method: Water fecal contents and the first intermediate snail host were sampled between June and September of 2019. One hundred twenty questionnaires were surveyed in two villages of different environmental surroundings, one next to a river and the other located inland, in Northeast Thailand. Multivariate regression analyses using linear mixed effect models assessed the influence of social, behavioral and perceptual factors on raw fish consumption frequency, willingness to avoid consumption and liver fluke infection status. Social network analysis compared the degree of raw fish dish sharing between the villages and assessed the probable influence of connections to fish procurement locations and sharing activities on liver fluke infection risk. Results: High abundance of the first intermediate snail host and presence of fecal contamination in water could endanger both villages to ecosystem disservices of parasitic transmission. The river-side village relied more on provisioning ecosystem services than the inland village (29.7% vs. 16.1% of villages) to consume raw fish as their main source of protein. Males in both villages (64.5 and 40.4 days/year for the respective villages) are also likely to consume koi pla and pla som, higher risk fish dishes, more frequently than females (4.1 and 4.3 days/year for the respective villages). The consumption habits of both villages were driven mostly by deriving cultural ecosystem services. Participation in raw fish dish sharing activities significantly reduced the odds of an individual being willing to avoid the consumption (Odds ratio = 0.19). Network analysis suggested that river-side villagers had a more direct raw fish dish sharing interaction and they procured fish from multiple locations; these characteristics might potentially account for more liver fluke infected households in the village. Conclusion: Villagers' raw fish consumption is driven by deriving cultural ecosystem services, and the geographic settings of the villages potentially affect villagers' fish procurement locations and infection risk. The findings underscore the linkages between villagers and their surrounding ecosystem environments as pertinent determinants for foodborne parasitic disease risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Introducing SMDM for accurate dynamic landscape change detection. • Empirical comparison of SMDM with cutting-edge methods in change detection. • Incorporating SMDM into the HMRS framework to boost dynamic optimization. • Comparing proposed method to advanced methods in dynamic e-procurement. The increasing dynamism of global markets, coupled with the occurrence of unpredictable events, has introduced substantial challenges in formulating efficient supply chain strategies. The inherent dynamic nature of logistic networks necessitates a departure from traditional supply chain methodologies. This study proposes an advanced solution for dynamic e-procurement utilizing evolutionary algorithms (EAs). In conventional supply chains involving buyers and suppliers, a critical challenge is identifying cost-efficient suppliers capable of fulfilling consumer demands amidst fluctuating prices and quantities. Traditional optimization techniques often fail to perform effectively under these dynamic conditions. Moreover, detecting changes during the optimization process is an additional hurdle in dynamic optimization problems. Recent advancements have demonstrated the efficacy of EAs in solving a variety of real-world dynamic optimization issues. This research introduces a novel evolutionary algorithmic framework that integrates the Hybrid Multipopulational Reinitialization Strategy (HMRS), with a proposed hybrid change detection mechanism (named Smirnov-based Multi-sensor Detection Mechanism (SMDM)) to address the dynamic e-procurement problems. The proposed framework enhances the algorithm's adaptability and responsiveness to real-time changes within the e-procurement environment. By effectively detecting and responding to these variations, the framework aims to optimize procurement processes, ensuring efficiency and robustness in managing fluctuating requirements and conditions inherent to dynamic e-procurement scenarios. The empirical analysis presented underscores the superiority of Differential Evolution (DE) variants over Genetic Algorithm (GA) variants within the procurement context. The detailed empirical study validates the effectiveness of the proposed dynamic approach in addressing the challenges associated with dynamic e-procurement. Considering real-world parameter fluctuations, the proposed approach demonstrates significant resilience, positioning it as a robust and efficient solution for optimizing the e-procurement process and adeptly managing the complexities of the supply chain environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The electronic auction is a type of bidding for the acquisition and contracting of common services and its use by public bodies, including Federal Universities, is mandatory. The electronic trading process is formed by information that has strategic value used for organizational learning and better decision making. Objective: This research aims to analyze how information management is characterized in electronic trading in a Federal Teaching Institution. Methodology: The study will be carried out at the Federal University of Alagoas, the largest public education institution in the State of Alagoas. The research is characterized by being descriptive with a qualitative approach, thirteen civil servants who work in electronic trading were interviewed, using a semi-structured questionnaire as a data collection instrument. The questionnaires were constructed using the information management model of Choo (2006). Content analysis was performed as a data investigation method. Results: The main information needs were identified as: description of the material or services, price quotation and purpose of the acquisition. Personal sources are the most used by servers in resolving doubts in the process. There is no easy access to information from other sectors and information products and services are outdated and not very detailed for some users. Conclusion: The research is relevant because it analyzed the information management in the institution, which can bring improvements in the use of information, in the elaboration of information products and services from the informational needs of purchase requesters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Motivation: Donors have increasingly disbursed funds using aid chains, whereby work is subcontracted to organizations socially and geographically closer to recipients. Aid chains reduce scope for opportunism in contracting. They do, however, enable donors to distance themselves from the messy work of engaging the politics of interventions—"ethics dumping"—with negative impacts on project outcomes. Purpose: How can aid chains—and project outcomes—be improved? This article investigates what can be learned from global value chains (GVCs). In particular, it examines Multi‐Stakeholder Partnerships (MSPs)—currently considered the gold standard for governing GVCs—and evaluates their potential fit for aid chains. Methods and approach: The article describes aid chains' drivers and challenges, and theoretically links the fragmentation of public‐sector service provision to the fragmentation of global production processes. By reviewing MSP case studies and thematically analysing their scope to transform power asymmetries, it empirically evaluates MSPs' potential by assessing the case of the Australian NGO Cooperation Program. Findings While MSPs offer an ambitious framework, their application is weakened by, first, the lack of a consumer role, and second, their central focus on relational practices in transforming power asymmetries. The article's conclusion that MSPs offer limited policy transferability furthers nascent literatures on ethical public‐sector procurement; power asymmetries in MSPs; and how aid chains might be improved. Policy implications: Aid chains reduce the scope for opportunism in contracting, however their power asymmetries have negative impacts on project outcomes that cannot be ignored. MSPs offer an ambitious but problematic policy option for improving aid chain governance. Their lack of effective measures to address power asymmetries limits their potential, calling into question their status as the gold standard for GVC governance and their policy transferability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: South Africa's government departments use a manual paper-based procurement system with some electronic features despite the high level of human interference contributing to corruption, favouritism and inefficiency associated with manual paper-based procurement system. This suggests a lack of readiness towards full e-procurement adoption in South Africa's public sector. However, studies on readiness factors affecting e-procurement adoption have been scantly investigated in multiple government departments in South Africa. Objectives: This study aims to determine the readiness factors that affect e-procurement in multiple government departments in South Africa. Method: A quantitative research design was adopted to sample 113 public procurement officials using a cluster sampling method from five identified national government departments across five ministerial clusters. The data were collected using an online self-administered survey questionnaire and processed and analysed through Stata Release 15 statistical analysis software. Results: Six factors were identified to influence e-procurement readiness in South African government departments. These include technology and organisation's finance, among others. These factors will aid in effective planning of government departments regarding e-procurement readiness. Conclusion: Government departments should consider the factors that influence e-procurement readiness when deciding to adopt e-procurement system. This would help government departments to plan effectively e-procurement acquisition, running and training of users and thereby streamlining their procurement processes, reducing operating costs and minimising corruption. Contribution: This study fills a lack of knowledge on the readiness factors affecting e-PP adoption in the South African government department context. The knowledge of these factors, generated through empirical analysis, would guide government departments when deciding on e-PP readiness and streamline procurement processes in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The business environment is increasingly becoming volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) because of globalisation, increased competition, random consumer tastes changes and environmental factors. Traditional procurement strategies are becoming increasingly redundant because of the volatility of the global business environment. The market has thus called for increased agility to conquer the VUCA nature of the supply chain environment. Objectives: The study sought to examine the role that e-procurement plays in augmenting the agility of supply chains. The four determinants of e-procurement, that is, e-design, e-sourcing, e-evaluation and e-negotiation, were linked directly with supply chain agility. Method: A census approach was taken to gather data from 219 supply chain and procurement employees of Zimbabwe's telecommunications and technology industry. A self-administered survey questionnaire was used based on a scientifically developed and validated supply chain agility measurement scale from the extant literature. Results: Using structural equation modelling (SEM), the study's results confirmed that e-procurement significantly predicts supply chain agility. All determinants of e-procurement were statistically significantly explaining supply chain agility in a volatile business environment. Conclusion: The study concludes that e-procurement augments the agility of the supply chain in volatile business environments, as e-procurement can increase swiftness and agility as it fosters ubiquitous business processes on a seamless real-time basis. It emerged from the study that the supply chain vulnerabilities volatile industries face could be eliminated through supply chain agility, augmented through e-procurement systems. The study's findings also implore supply network members from upstream to downstream to adopt e-procurement. Contribution: The study has practical implications for all supply network members from upstream to downstream. It implores these members to adopt e-procurement to revive supply networks amid environmental volatility and alleviate miscommunication. Study also offers theoretical implications for e-procurement and supply chain management. The study also contributes to the body of knowledge by extending the existing theories on e-procurement and supply chains in the context of environmental volatility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tender process consists in competing offers from different candidate suppliers or contractors. The tender winner is supposed to supply or provide a service in better conditions than competitors. Tenders are developed using centralized unverified systems, which reduce transparency, fairness and trust on the process, it also reduces the ability to detect malicious attempts to manipulate the process. Systems that provide formal verification, decentralization, authentication, trust and transparency can mitigate these risks. Satisfiability Modulo Theories provides a formal analysis to prove correctness of tender offers properties, verified properties ensures system reliability. In addition, one technology that claims to provide decentralization is Blockchain, a chain of distributed and decentralized records linked in a way such that integrity is ensured. This paper presents a formal verified and decentralized proposal system, based on Satisfiability Modulo Theories and Blockchain technology, to make electronic procurement tenders more reliable, transparent and fair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Commission aims to amend the EU Public Procurement Directive to prioritize European products in specific sectors, citing benefits for citizens and security of supply. This preference for European products diverges from the EU's usual stance on unrestricted public procurement markets and aligns with recent trade defense measures. However, the EU's ability to implement such preferences is limited by international agreements like the WTO Government Procurement Agreement and free trade agreements. The EU's potential Procurement Preference Framework could mark a significant policy shift towards protectionism, pending formal proposal and approval by Member States and the European Parliament. [Extracted from the article]

An electronic bidding system promises to save resources in procurement procedures for many industries. While the results of previous studies in several countries sounded promising, it is concerning that more evidence would be needed to support changes in practice for the pharmaceutical sector. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of price saving in bidding-based electronic procurement setting and to clarify the main factors contributing to drug price changes. A comprehensive literature search was retrieved from five databases (Scopus, PubMed, ProQuest, Web of Science, Medline) to identify articles that studied the prices of medicines as a case study before and after the implementation of the electronic bidding system. Articles that were published in English from January 2012 to December 2021 were eligible for inclusion. The result showed that a total of 3214 records articles were identified in the electronic databases after the exclusion of duplicate articles. After the initial review, we found 13 studies that fulfilled our inclusion criteria. The review presented the important information suggesting that the use of the electronic bidding system likely results in a reduction in procurement prices of medicines. The prevalence of price saving for pharmaceutical procurement ranged from 7.24 % to 40 %. Additionally, the following factors were indirectly associated with drug price changes; bid volume, procurement location, contract characteristics, level of competitiveness and procurement organization. Further research may need to examine the functioning of e-bidding policies to address problems like supply disruptions to preserve the integrity of bidding-based pharmaceutical systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging technologies such as electronic procurement have rapidly become common practice in recent years. With the advent of internet technologies and open innovations, the traditional procurement system is transformed into an electronic procurement system. Technology adoption is influenced by multiple factors, including the adopter, technology, and ecosystem in which they function. Considering this, E-procurement is still being adopted slowly. This research aims to investigate the extension of the adoption of E-procurement and identify the relationships between the E-procurement technologies and green procurement practices across different sectors of ISO 14001-certified Malaysian enterprises. This research is supported by the Technology Acceptance Model, one of the significant theories of technology adoption. Using SPSS and SmartPLS, the survey data is analyzed quantitatively. The structural model explains 86% of the variance in green procurement and shows the positive significant relationship between green procurement and the E-procurement technology of the ISO 14001 firms. Consequently, adopting E-procurement technology would benefit company sustainability. A benchmark for ISO companies will be established, highlighting the importance of E-procurement technology in improving green procurement and supply chain efficiency. The study recommends that demand for environmentally friendly products and services be fueled by technology-based purchases, resulting in a greener supply chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pandemic COVID-19 brought an impact on the decline of the economy in Indonesia. However, in the pandemic COVID-19, a lot of retailers switch their business to online shops that use e-marketplace. The study aims to empirically investigate factors that build customer repurchase intention toward Indonesia's online shop in the e-marketplace and explore the mediating impact of trust on repurchase intention. This study employs quantitative analyses. The respondent from this study is customers of online shop that use e-marketplaces in Indonesia. This study used SEM-PLS to analyze the research model and data. The model was empirically tested using 407 respondents' data. The result showed that customer trust, digital influencer influence, social e-WOM, information quality positively impacted customer repurchase intention. The result also showed that customer trust mediates the relationship between variable digital influencer influence, information quality, and social e-WOM with customer repurchase intention. Moreover, social e-WOM and information quality are essential predictors in building customer repurchase intention. This study tries to reduce the gap in the marketing literature by providing empirical evidence about the influence of digital influencers on customer decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Annually, the state allocates significant amounts of money for the carrying out of public procurement contracts concerned with the supply of food products. Rural areas, due to their natural potential, but also to their existing human resource, can further develop through the implementation of projects concerned with circular economy and a sustainable food chain. The implementation of Green Deal policies, the integration of appropriate sustainable development strategies will allow the economic growth of rural areas. In the making of this article, information published in the Electronic Public Procurement System (EPPS), during the 2018-2021 period was collected, concerning contracts for the supply of various food products. The novelty of this article consists in the analysis carried out on food related public procurement, by product categories and institutions. Based on the results of this research, there are suggestions for opportunities of development in rural areas, issues related to the sustainability of the food chain which should be integrated in sustainable public procurement procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the impact of electronic procurement practices and sustainable organizational competitive advantage of the upstream sector of the oil and gas firms in Nigeria. Specifically, it assessed the relationship between electronic tendering, electronic invoicing, electronic payment, and electronic auctioning and sustainable competitive advantage of some selected upstream sector of the Nigerian oil and gas companies in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. The ex-post facto and survey research design were adopted for this study. The population of the study were the employees and management staff of the procurement department of the respective upstream oil and gas firms in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. A total of 224 copies of questionnaire were distributed and while 220 were successfully retrieved. Convenience sampling technique was used in administering the copies of questionnaire to the staff that constituted the sample. The research model was estimated using the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) technique through the use of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 22. The study found that that electronic tendering, electronic invoicing and electronic payment have positive significant relationship with sustainable organizational competitive advantage in the upstream oil and gas industry while electronic auctioning has no significant influence but has positive relationship with sustainable organizational competitive advantage in upstream oil and gas industry. The study recommends that management of organizations should encourage the practice of electronic tendering, automate the practice of invoicing and ensure all payments are carried out using e-payment to implement electronic auctioning practices as all these will lead to sustainable organizational competitive advantage of the organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between 2019 and 2021, the public procurement systems in Lebanon was under study as a first step to undergo a critical reform process. This process was topped with the issuance of the Public Procurement Law number 244 on July 2021. There are great hopes built on this law since it has been long waited for and the prospects on its success are high. It is based on eight principles: integration, transparency, competitiveness, efficiency, accountability, integrity, professionalism, and sustainability and local development. The law creates a regulatory agency, an independent body to handle complaints, encourages SMEs and local industry among other benefits. The objective of this paper is to define the effectiveness and validity of the new Law and e-procurement stipulated in the new Law and how is it a tool for reform that enhances transparency integrity and efficiency in the new Lebanese procurement system. The Methodology in this paper is a qualitative literature review and document analysis of existing reports from the Lebanese official entities and international bodies that took part in the assessment and preparation of the new Public Procurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With digital technologies providing sustainable avenues for addressing construction problems, electronic procurement systems (EPS) offer viable solutions for transforming construction procurement processes in projects. However, the uptake of EPS has not been as apparent as it should have been due to the complexities of barriers and strategies. Unlike previous studies that focused narrowly on either barriers to or strategies for EPS use, this study aims at examining EPS barriers and strategies from various countries to provide a more comprehensive global perspective regarding EPS implementation. Through an expert survey, 94 procurement experts from different countries evaluated the influences of these barriers and strategies. Subsequently, factor analysis was used to objectively cluster the results from the survey. In effect, six groups of barriers and three groups of strategies were identified. The barrier groups were related to technological usability and evolution, security and unsupportive environment, culture, infrastructure, unethical practices, and financial and skill. For strategies, the groups were related to organizational dynamics, industry technology ecosystem, and innovation adaptation mechanism. Regarding the developed and developing economies categorization, the rank agreement analysis results showed several degrees of disparities and consensus on the influences of barriers and strategies to EPS implementation across the two contexts. In effect, the contextual variabilities in the influences of these barriers and strategies across the two economic contexts are provided for researchers and practitioners to improve their efforts in promoting EPS. This study contributes to EPS knowledge by providing insights on the contextual dynamics of critical barriers and strategies from the developed and developing economies contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In 2016 the UK Department of Health and Social Care published the results of a comprehensive review of efficiency in hospitals, identifying "unwarranted variation" in procurement (or purchasing) practices for materials, supplies and devices. Addressing this variation in materials and supplies procurement practice has been identified as particularly important for creating efficiencies in health service delivery. However, little is known about the behaviour and experiences of front-line individuals who make these procurement decisions, which has implications for the development of strategies to improve efficiency. The objective of this study is to improve understanding of the factors influencing procurement behaviour and decisions among requisitioners who use an internal electronic procurement portal for medical supplies and equipment, and identify areas where efficiency could be improved.Methods: Qualitative semi-structured individual interview study, following approximately 70 h of exploratory observations on site. The study context was a large London National Health Service (NHS) healthcare provider (the Trust), where we focussed primarily on purchases managed by a large hospital. Participants were drawn from requisitioners from multiple directorates across the Trust (n = 15; of these n = 2 clinical staff members, n = 13 non-clinical).Results: Four factors stood out in our analysis as directly affecting procurement decisions: (1) a high level of variation in electronic purchasing and inventory management procedures throughout the Trust, (ii) an inaccurate and cumbersome search facility on the internal electronic procurement platform, exacerbated by poor IT skills training and support (iii) an inefficient purchase approvals system and (iv) multiple working sites and cluttered environments. We observed that these factors led requisitioners to employ a variety of strategies or so-called 'workarounds' to overcome the challenges they encountered, including stockpiling, relying on internal and supplier relationships, by-passing procedures to save time, purchasing outside existing agreements to save cost, and (re) delegating purchasing responsibilities among requisitioner staff - which both addressed and created difficulties.Conclusions: Working with the assumption that staff 'workarounds' indicate where main issues lie, we offer four possible explanations to why they occur: (a) to maintain services and prepare for future care requirements, (b) to save on costs for the organisation, (c) to develop skills and development in purchasing and (d) to break silos and work collaboratively. These four explanations help provide initial starting points for improving efficiencies in health supplies' procurement processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking into account growing imbalance in the field of public procurement management towards the shadow economy alongside manifestations of corruption, we consider it appropriate to study the impact of anti-corruption monitoring tools on the effectiveness of the functioning of the public procurement management system in Kazakhstan. This article examines the specifics of anti-corruption monitoring in the public procurement management system. The current situation in the field of monitoring public procurement in the Republic of Kazakhstan and the experience of other countries are analyzed, on the basis of which the problems of functioning in this area are highlighted. In order to solve these problems and develop the institution of anti-corruption monitoring in the public procurement management system of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the use of the advanced experience of other countries is proposed. The peculiarities of corruption in the field of public procurement in Kazakhstan are identified, and the main measures implemented to improve the effectiveness of combating corruption in the field of public procurement are disclosed. The need to strengthen the public monitoring of public procurement and the need to create public control centers in the field of public procurement are justified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amendments to the Provisions on Stopping of the Procurement Procedure When Filing an Appea... According to the current PPA, an appeal against the procurement documentation stops the public procurement procedure until DKOM issues a decision. Amendments Which Allow the Dismissing of Appeals That Do Not Contain Appeal Grounds The Ministry further points out that some appellants file appeals without appeal grounds. Keywords: Croatia; public procurement act amendments; appeal procedure EN Croatia public procurement act amendments appeal procedure 246 249 4 09/20/21 20210901 NES 210901 I. Introduction The current Croatian Public Procurement Act[1] (PPA) was adopted in late 2016 and entered into force on 1 January 2017. [Extracted from the article]

The object of research is the public procurement system in terms of accounting for the processes of buying (selling) goods (works, services) using electronic communications. A problematic aspect of modern electronic public procurement platforms is the lack of information support for accounting, control and taxation functions. In the context of the development of innovative computer and communication technologies, it becomes possible to integrate various electronic services and electronic communications into the public procurement system in order to automate accounting processes. In the process of studying the prospects for the implementation of a system of public communications with expanded functional capabilities, general scientific empirical, logical and historical methodological methods of cognition of reality were used. The theoretical and methodological aspects of improving the accounting of public procurement in the context of the formation of an innovative electronic platform for business communications were studied on the basis of institutional and innovative methods of scientific research. The paper proposes to place electronic contracts at the heart of the business communications system. A procedure has been developed for business interaction between participants in electronic trading through the mechanism for concluding and executing electronic contracts for the purchase (sale) of goods (works, services). Based on the creation of a system of electronic contracts, it is possible to form a database of credentials. The expediency of using accounting information for the automated implementation of public procurement accounting procedures has been substantiated. The methodology for accounting for the occurrence and repayment of accounts payable and receivable for purchased (sold) goods (works, services), charging and paying taxes and fees, electronic money transactions in various currencies, electronic money and cryptocurrency, the occurrence of credit obligations, calculating the amount of bad debts has been improved. The implementation of a public procurement system with expanded functionality will facilitate the establishment of effective business communications with contractors, the integration of disparate electronic services into a single system. As well as minimizing costs in the process of electronic trading, automating the processing of primary information, optimizing accounting and management processes at the enterprise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent recognition for increased digitization of construction processes presents an important need to accelerate electronic procurement systems (EPS) application on projects. The EPS uptake rate in construction is relatively low, and the decision process required to increase the uptake is complex due to the influences of several competing driving forces (DFs). Previous studies identified individual DFs based on experts' qualitative judgements and knowledge, which are subjective and lack the inherent clustering influences of DFs on EPS application. This study developed a fuzzy-based evaluation model for assessing DFs influences on EPS application in construction projects. The model transforms qualitative judgments into quantitative and more-usable assessments using fuzzy sets for effective long-term planning and consistent implementation decisions. A data set of 121 expert responses, resulting in 6 clusters of DFs, was applied to fuzzy logic to develop the DFs influence evaluation model. The integrity and environment-related forces and process optimization–related forces were the top two DFs clusters influencing EPS uptake. The remaining four clusters had significant influences, resulting in an overall high influence threshold. This implies that significant influence levels of the DFs clusters are required to accelerate EPS uptake on projects. This study contributes to knowledge by developing an influence model integrating subjective expressions to indicate EPS uptake within a project's environment. The model's flexibility helps to assess influences based on a decision maker's situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-time monitoring the drugs penetration into brain is crucial for clinical therapy of neurodegenerative diseases. In this study, a Blood-Brain Barrier-electrochemical sensing (BBB-ES) platform combining BBB on chip model and electrochemical sensing system was proposed, which facilitated stable BBB growth under fluidic conditions and realized real-time detection of L-Dopa across the BBB. Based on this system, the effects of fluid force on the cell morphology, skeleton arrangement and tight junction protein ZO-1 of BBB growth were evaluated, it was verified that the fluid force promote cell rearrangement. Additionally, L-Dopa detecting performance was optimized by modifying SWNTs-AuNPs-PPy/Tyr(Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes-Au Nanoparticles-Polypyrrole/Tyrosinase) on electrochemical electrode, which showed a wide linear response range of 10–500 μM and excellent selectivity toward L-Dopa. The integrated BBB-ES system was finally applied to real-time monitor the penetration process of L-Dopa through the BBB, it was proved that the penetration of L-Dopa increased with the increase of flow rate and time, and finding that L-Dopa was delivered by passive diffusion without disrupting the integrity of BBB. Based on these findings, the system can be used to monitor the real-time process of different drugs penetrating BBB and even different organ barriers, which also provide the possibility to solve the clinical demand for drugs screen. • A Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) microchip integrated with a microfluidic electrochemical platform was developed. • The morphological changes of the BBB layer under the action of fluid were observed. • The permeability of BBB layer based on optical and electrochemical methods was measured. • Tracking the content of L-Dopa across BBB in different blood vessels to analyze the penetration mechanism was evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is devoted to the coverage of the electronic system "Prozorro" as a means of forming an effective and transparent system of public procurement in Ukraine. The main worldview approaches to the definition of public and public procurement are studied. The legal framework of public procurement in Ukraine is analyzed. The reasons for the creation of "Prozorro", the main provisions of this system and the conclusion about its positive impact on public procurement are identified. It is concluded that the main purpose of the introduction of "Prozorro" is to create an effective, transparent and open system of public procurement in Ukraine, which will bring our country closer to EU accession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the case study method, the study examines the prospects and initiatives of the state that can create preconditions for the formation of new areas of legal regulation in the field of digital public procurement as well as issues of improving the mechanisms of information systems, taking into account the specifics of states with a multi-structured economy. The objective of the study is to assess the applicability of the tools for digital transformation of the Russian Federation in the field of public procurement in the context of international practice. Confirming all the advantages of the idea of digital transformation of public procurement systems, the Russian experience is intended to demonstrate what problems at the level of legislative regulation the state policy associated with the implementation of such systems can face. In this case, in contrast to foreign practices, the Russian system of electronic public procurement in the aggregate creates a single information space that, in fact, has no direct analogues and is a special example of interaction between electronic platforms in this area. In addition, the example of introducing distributed ledger technology into such systems is significant from the point of view of the functioning of electronic public procurement platforms. The results of this study and the tools used to assess legal regulation in the field of public procurement can be used by state authorities of the Russian Federation, taking into account the needs of entrepreneurs, to better assess the feasibility and consequences of participation in public procurement procedures. This study's results can also be of relevance to researchers of comparative legislation in the field of legal regulation of public procurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a matter of principle, suppliers and goods originating in the European Economic Area, in parties to the WTO's Government Procurement Agreement, or to a bilateral agreement concluded with the EU, are protected against any forms of discrimination based on the grounds of nationality, similar to those coming from the EU. Suppliers originating in other countries, falling outside the scope of Article 25 of Directive 2014/24, cannot, however, be guaranteed the same form of protection. The access of the latter to procurement procedures in the EU may hence be blocked, but this essentially is a prerogative of each national government and of each contracting authority. On the other hand, confronted with an assault by Chinese companies which have managed to capture a dangerously big share of the EU public procurement market, the Commission started an active campaign on several fronts. More recently, the Commission decided to make a substantial effort in convincing Member States to come forward with concrete measures by which to restrict in an effective manner the access of third-country and, in particular, Chinese, suppliers to the EU procurement market. In response, the Romanian Government adopted in April 2021 a new set of laws providing for the automatic exclusion from the award procedures of all suppliers residing in one of the countries listed therein. Beyond its immediate economic effect, this measure could create some serious blockages in the market with unimaginable consequences, especially in times of crisis such as the recent Covid-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, also due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the issue of using e-procurement is becoming more and more relevant for all countries around the world, and especially for EU Member States implementing the requirements of the Directives on public procurement. The substantial advantages of the use of electronic procedures for public procurement for reduction of tender costs and better prices, the possibility to avoid misuse, collusion and corruption, led some countries to explore opportunities to adapt the traditional e-procurement experience for public-private partnership (PPP) and concession tenders. Today, the regulation in this field is practically absent and the experience is very limited. This article presents: an analysis of the situation regarding current regulation, experience in electronic PPP procurement implementation, and trends; the peculiarities of PPP procurement compared to traditional public procurement; the difficulties related to PPP procurement as e-procurement; and the recommendations of authors on the use of electronic procurements for PPPs and concessions based on the peculiarities of a project implemented using relevant mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, the Romanian National Agency for Public Procurement (N.A.P.P.) has announced the modification of a functionality within the electronic public procurement system („S.E.A.P.”) to technically allow contracting authorities to conduct public procurement award procedures using dynamic purchasing systems. The dynamic purchasing system (D.P.S.) is an entirely electronic instrument that supports competition and transparency in public procurement. This article runs through the advantages and disadvantages of D.P.S. compared to a similar instrument, respectively, the framework-agreement. Moreover, we will include a comparative law perspective as well as other practical examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Italy • Consequences of Software Malfunctioning in E-Procurement - The Highest Italian Administrative Court Applies the Proportionality Principle Therefore, the Italian courts are obliged to apply it not only as one facet of the domestic principle of I buon andamento i , which is an internal notion, but also, and mainly, because EU principles must be considered mandatory. 26 Cf M Steinicke and P L Vesterdorf (eds), I EU public procurement law i (Hart 2018) 326-328; P Bogdanowicz, 'The application of the principle of proportionality to modifications of public contracts' (2016) European Procurement & Public Private Partnership Law Review 194 ff. 27 Case C-171/15 I Connexxion i [2016] ECLI:EU:C:2016:948. [Extracted from the article]

Albania • Innovation as a Monitoring Tool to Strengthen Law Enforcement - An Albanian Public Procurement Case Keywords: public procurement law; law enforcement; innovation; efficiency; monitoring tool; negotiation without prior publication; Public Procurement Agency; PPA; Contracting Authority; CA; e-procurement system; EPS EN public procurement law law enforcement innovation efficiency monitoring tool negotiation without prior publication Public Procurement Agency PPA Contracting Authority CA e-procurement system EPS 301 306 6 12/17/20 20201201 NES 201201 The main objective of public procurement legislation is to rule the interaction between public sector and private sector, which is in its core a financial interaction, assuring effective use of public money. The 2005 European Commission (EC) Progress Report on Albania pointed out that very considerable further efforts will be necessary if Albania is to ensure the correct implementation of procurement rules. See Public Procurement Agency of Albania, "Annual Report 2017" (2017), 20. 21 The only task the PPA could execute by that time was counting the negotiated procedures without prior publication and ex-post monitoring responsible Contracting Authorities. [Extracted from the article]

Governments globally are leveraging information and communication technology (ICT) growth towards improving the quality of public procurement services for socio-economic development. However, the extent of its application differs across nations. Notwithstanding the extant theoretical and empirical literature on IT for development, knowledge on how to assess readiness for adopting a full e-procurement system in the public sector of lower and lower-middle income countries (LMICs) begs for understanding. With the narrative of Ghana, we address this gap by drawing on the institutional and economic theory and the United Nations E-Government Development Index towards a holistic framework beyond the dyad of linear website functionalities and internet focus of prior e-government adoption models. Elite interviews gathered from multiple cases from Ghana's public sector reveals the key readiness determinants for a full public sector e-procurement system. This study has significant implications for shaping the process-oriented management of government e-procurement projects towards socio-economic development in LMICs amid their complex institutional and socio-technical environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

E-public procurement has a great potential to improve public procurement processes. It helps to increase competitiveness, and the use of digital technologies also minimizes transaction costs for business, increases trust and the transparency of decisions made by public customers. The goal of this case study is to analyze the functionalities of the Kazakh e-procurement web portal EPP, to evaluate them in a national and comparative perspective and to propose recommendations with a focus on selected process issues and its cybersecurity in the condition of digital transformation of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The analysis of functionalities of EPP from planning to execution of the contract allows it to propose important changes with the potential to increase competitiveness and decrease transaction costs of procurement in the country. The specific focus is on cybersecurity and proposals how to increase it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazil has specific legislation regarding public procurement. Despite clear legislation, corruption in the selection of suppliers is often noted. In order to bring more transparency to the process, as well as to minimize the possibility of corruption, the use of public e-procurement systems is growing. In this context, specifically in the Brazilian case, an agent-based negotiation model is proposed to automate the negotiation and selection of suppliers in the electronic purchasing modality. The model is composed of procedures to measure the utility of proposal; generate counterproposals through concession tactics; and to choose the most appropriate supplier, according to the utility of proposals at the end of the negotiation. A negotiation simulation was performed in an instance of the acquisition of a product by a Brazilian university. It was possible to verify the applicability of the model and evaluate the impact of the parameters in the result of the negotiation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This Part II concludes the paper published in EPPPL 1-2019 regarding the implementation of e-procurement in Portugal. In Part I, the evolution regarding e-procurement provisions within Public Procurement Directives from 2004 to 2014 was addressed. Part II now addresses how both the Public Contracts Code and the specific legislation regarding electronic platforms have transposed the 2014 Public Procurement Directives into internal law, namely: (i) how the transposition of articles 29, 22, 40 and annexes of the 2014 Directives was made [not only the legal regime but also how some litigious questions were taken (and solved) to national administrative courts]; (ii) how the first intention of the Legislator to transpose the 2014 Directives went; and (iii) how they were actually effectively transposed. As already referred to in Part I, the transposition of the 2014 Directives in Portugal was made through a two-step procedure. Article 22 of the 2014/24/Directive was regulated by Law 96/2015, a very extensive and complex regulation regarding e-procurement, while the remaining provisions of the 2014 Directives were transposed in 2017 after a period of public discussion of a very different draft. The path that has been built since 2004 is, thus, consolidated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study is based on the secondary data compiled by the Ministry of Human Resource & Development, Govt., of India for the period 2012-13, 2013-14 & 2014-15 and was released as the ranking list of Institutes of Engineering and Technology in India for the year 2016. The study aims to assess the Returns on Investment (ROI) of the twenty leading libraries of the Institutes of Engineering and Technology in India in the form of institutional research output. An attempted has also been made to rank the each individual library on the basis of seven different parameters chosen for the study and worked out the difference between their ascribed rank as per the MHRD list and the achieved ranks worked out on the basis of chosen. The rankings have been calculated on the basis of scores earned by each individual library against each individual parameter. The results showed that the Institutes of Engineering and Technology in India concentrate more on procurement of electronic resources in their libraries, spending nearly three-fourth of their budget on the procurement of electronic documents mostly in the form of online journals and eBooks. While evaluating the ascribed and achieved ranking, 95% libraries under study faced shuffle, as 55% libraries slipped in their rank, while as 45 % improved and 5% showed no change. The study gives a clear idea about the importance of libraries and the part these sub-institutions' play in the overall ranking of their institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Portugal has been leading the way in the implementation of e-procurement within the European Union. This paper, presented in two Parts, starts, in this Part I, by explaining the framework of e-procurement, describing the Portuguese experience regarding the use of electronic platforms based on factual data assembled by the Portuguese regulatory body. Part II describes the legal regime imposed by the European Union Law thoroughly, particularly by article 22 of Directive 2014/24/EU, which is contained in a specific ruling as it has occurred before the full 2014 Directives transposition. To provide the full picture of e-procurement in Portugal, the paper also explains the projected intention of the Directive transposition and the actual legal ruling enshrined in the Public Contracts Code (PCC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]