- Project
- Lebanon
Lebanon has an outdated and fragmented public procurement system with considerable capacity and technology gaps, resulting in inefficiencies and high risks of corruption. As a consequence, the quality of the procurement system is below average (48/100) compared to the rest of the world and to a number of MENA countries.
A coherent and clear Public Procurement system, in line with international standards and based on sound legal and institutional foundations, is thought to achieve savings, provide more fiscal space to finance public investments, allow flexibility to assess, monitor, and manage fiduciary risks, budget uncertainties, and to reduce inefficiency and corruption, allowing better service delivery to citizens. Accounting for 20% of central government expenditures and 6.5% of the Gross Domestic Product (around US$3.4 billion) on yearly average, public procurement is a key policy instrument to ensure value for money, stimulate growth, attract investors and restore trust.
The Ministry of Finance committed to procurement reform, giving a strong signal of trust to both the private sector and the donor community. The Institut des Finances Basil Fuleihan was mandated by the Minister of Finance as National Focal Point for this exercise (decision 109/1 of 04/03/2019, and decision 199/1 of 09/06/2020) and collaborates with 14 institutions as part of a transformation process based on four pillars:
1. An evidence-based diagnostic of the public procurement system, using MAPS II instrument (Methodology for Assessing Procurement Systems), in collaboration with the World Bank (WB) and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD); MAPS exercise was completed in 2020 with a full-fledged report and recommendations for reform roadmap;
2. A new public procurement law in line with UNCITRAL Model Law (2011) and OECD Guidelines (2016) was drafted in 2019. It was submitted to Parliament in February 2020 and discussed in a special Parliamentary Committee from June 2020 till May 2021. The draft law was transferred to Joint Parliamentary Committees for discussions, to be later sent to General Assembly for voting;
3. Standard bidding documents based on previous documents prepared by the Ministry of Finance in 2013 under WB financing and OMSAR under EU financing in addition to other practical tools to ensure sound reform implementation;
4. A public procurement reform strategy, for the short and medium terms, is being elaborated in collaboration with the World Bank (WB) and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), based on MAPS assessment recommendations, draft law provisions, and on-going consultations with concerned stakeholders..
Visit our public procurement page for more information and resources.
You can also watch this series of 5 videos on the reform and the new law.
Episode 1:
Don’t miss the others
Resources
- Progress Report - Reforming Public Procurement in Lebanon - May 2021 - English (pdf)
- Executive Summary - MAPS Report - May 2021 - English (pdf)
- MAPS Lebanon - Assessment outcomes, way forward and lessons learnt (PPT)
- MAPS - Final Report - January - English (pdf)
- Progress Report - Reforming Public Procurement in Lebanon - Jan 2021 - English (pdf)
- Webinar: Efficient Public Procurement Complaints and the Role of Independent Review Body: International good practices and roadmap for Lebanon (Webpage)
- Institutional Mapping of Procurement Stakeholders in Lebanon - conducted by Siren Associates, with the support of the World Bank (pdf)
- Executive Summary - MAPS Report - January 2021 - Arabic (pdf)
- Progress Report - Reforming Public Procurement in Lebanon - 2020 - Arabic (pdf)
- Progress Report - Reforming Public Procurement in Lebanon - 2020 - English (pdf)
- Presentation of Public Procurement Draft Law - June 2020 - Arabic (pdf)
- Briefing Note Lebanon Public Procurement Reform - May 2020 - Arabic (pdf)
- Briefing Note Lebanon Public Procurement Reform - May 2020 - English (pdf)
- Public Procurement Reform Road map - June 2020 - Arabic (pdf)
- Public Procurement Reform Road map - June 2020 - English (pdf)
- الشراء العام في لبنان: أداة سياساتيّة للنهوض والنمو المستدام (pdf)
