In such challenging times for Ukraine, the shape of procurement rules will determine the shape of the post-war recovery itself. Public procurement can be used strategically for achieving long-term environmental, social, and economic goals. Respective policies should reflect a strategic approach and provide incentives for public authorities and suppliers to engage in sustainable procurement. Implementation of a sustainable and just procurement policy will be required in the context of efficient reconstruction to attract appropriate international assistance and boost the business environment, innovation, social inclusion, and the recovery of affected industrial sectors in a climate-friendly way. It is also important that the reconstruction support is aligned with Ukraine’s EU integration process, complying with the EU procurement principles and standards.
Ukraine’s aspiration to adhere to European values and standards and longstanding desire to achieve full EU membership has resulted in it obtaining EU candidate country status3. It is also important to highlight that Ukraine’s path in its early phase and the long-term recovery process is strongly linked to European integration, which requires the alignment of Ukraine’s policies with EU principles and standards. In this context, full implementation of Ukraine’s obligations under the Association Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine (hereinafter the Association Agreement) ncluding, in particular, adherence to the principles of sustainable development and green economy is receiving priority attention.
We want to focus in this report on potential instruments to enable the potential of these plans, and chose to focus on public procurement. This legal and policy tool is particularly important for the rules of spending available public funds for recovery, and therefore deserves thorough attention. The shape of the procurement rules will determine the shape of the recovery itself. Well-timed, appropriate international assistance and mechanisms of transparent public procurement at all stages are prerequisites for effective recovery financing as noted in the Recovery Plan.
Analysing the recovery initiatives for Ukraine, a futureproof recovery and procurement are obviously interrelated elements that will ensure a positive perception of sustainable activities for all stakeholders. Moreover, implementation of the procurement policy in an open and transparent manner will attract more donor funds, which are necessary for recovery projects. Therefore, to boost the business environment, reconstruction procurement should be efficiently implemented.
Authors: Olena Shestopaliuk, Maciej Sychowiec, Anastasiia Vereshchynska
Cooperation: Piotr Bogdanowicz, Wojciech Lewandowski
