Government procurement
The WTO Regime on Government Procurement: Challenge and Reform
Originally an important but relatively obscure plurilateral instrument the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) is now becoming a pillar of the WTO system as a result of important developments since the Uruguay Round. This collection examines the issues and challenges that this raises for the GPA as well as future prospects for addressing government procurement at a multilateral level.
The procurement of state trading enterprises under the WTO Agreements: A proposal for a way forward
WTO members both developed and developing countries have traditionally engaged in state trading for various public policy goals such as income support for domestic producers price stabilization continuity in domestic food supply government revenue generation protection of public health and strategic control etc.
Work of UNCITRAL on government procurement: Purpose, objectives and complementarity with the work of the WTO
The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (‘UNCITRAL’) is the main legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law with a general mandate to further the progressive harmonization and unification of the law of international trade through the issuing of conventions and model laws cooperation with other international organizations and technical assistance.
The national treatment and exceptions provisions of the Agreement on Government Procurement and the pursuit of horizontal policies
This chapter discusses the relationship between two of the general provisions of the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) and the significance of this relationship for the use of public procurement as a policy tool to promote various industrial social and environmental policies that are not necessarily related to the goods works or services being acquired. Examples of such policies include providing economic development opportunities for underdeveloped regions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or for disadvantaged social groups. These policies have been variously referred to as ‘secondary’ ‘collateral’ or (as here) ‘horizontal’ policies.
Government procurement provisions in regional trade agreements: A stepping stone to GPA accession?
The majority of regional trade agreements (RTAs) that have been notified to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in recent years contain provisions on government procurement whether of a detailed or a limited nature. Such provisions are of interest for a number of reasons some specific to the field of government procurement and some general or systemic. To begin with government procurement provisions in RTAs are of importance in their own right in that in many jurisdictions they go a long way to establish the prevailing conditions of trade and competition in public procurement markets. This impact may be manifested through both behavioural rules that regulate procurement procedures and through coverage schedules that subject specific procurements to international competition. As such government procurement provisions in RTAs can directly affect performance in a key economic sector with implications for economy-wide economic development and growth.
Global procurement law in times of crisis: New Buy American policies and options in the WTO legal system
What should governments do to protect their citizens in a global economic crisis? National economies are interdependent and economic risk is systemic on a global scale but economic policy remains pervasively national in scope. Fiscal policy is one tool that some economists advocate to counteract economic downturns. Fiscal policy however has not been the subject of collective action at the global level and if it has states accomplish it in ad hoc political (as opposed to legal) arrangements in response to particular crises. More generally states retain primary responsibilities for structuring institutions to promote economic justice for their citizens. Despite moves towards conceptualizing justice as a global concern justice remains primarily a concern for domestic constitutional orders. Fiscal policy and economic justice are widely understood as the domain of the political orders of states national in their reach tied to notions of statehood. These features of the state are in tension with the increasingly complex interdependencies of states and with the dense web of treaty commitments they have undertaken particularly in economic matters.
The coverage negotiations under the Agreement on Government Procurement: Context, mandate, process and prospects
This chapter of the book considers the ongoing negotiations on coverage under the 1994 Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). The chapter is largely descriptive and procedural in nature since the negotiations are ongoing and the contents of Parties’ offers in the negotiations are (by intention) not publicly available. Nonetheless information on a number of aspects of the negotiations is in the public domain including information on the background of and context for the negotiations; the purpose and mandate of the negotiations as they are set out in the Agreement and related documents of the Committee on Government Procurement; the processes by which the negotiations have been conducted; and the current state of play. Such information provides valuable insights into the nature and scope of the negotiations the issues at stake and the prospects for conclusion of the negotiations
The design and operation of a bid challenge mechanism: The experience of Hong Kong, China
Under the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) Parties are required to establish a system of challenge procedures. Of all the Parties to the GPA Hong Kong China (henceforth ‘Hong Kong’) presents an interesting case study as it combines the features of a clean and effective government and a highly internationalized procurement market. In this chapter the author examines the efforts made by the Hong Kong government to implement its obligation under the GPA to provide challenge procedures. The chapter starts by reviewing the general background to the Review Body on Bid Challenges of Hong Kong. It then discusses in detail the bid challenge procedures and how such procedural rules have been applied and elaborated through the cases that came before the Review Body. The chapter concludes by noting that the bid challenge system in Hong Kong generally conforms to its GPA obligations.
Annex
This annex provides a comprehensive but non-exhaustive list of quality infrastructure elements for green hydrogen (GH2) that should be implemented according to an Expert Survey for IRENA’s ongoing project “Quality Infrastructure for Green Hydrogen: technical standards and quality control for the production and trade of renewable hydrogen”.
Acknowledgements/Abbreviations
This publication has been prepared under the overall guidance of Aik Hoe Lim of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and Roland Roesch of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
Mapping supply chain issues from a trade perspective
Green hydrogen has a number of uses. It can be used directly as an energy carrier and chemical input in multiple end-use applications. It can also be combined with a sustainable carbon source or with nitrogen to produce derivative compounds such as methanol or ammonia which can be used as feedstock for chemical production (e.g. plastics and fertilizers) or as sustainable fuels.