On June 24, the Government adopted amendments to Decree No. 169, returning mandatory purchases through Prozorro. Business asked to make this decision in order to be able to see the needs of the state in goods, works and services sold by entrepreneurs.

“During crises, business always considers public procurement as a very important source of sales. And the return of Prozorro will allow entrepreneurs to more actively resume work and support the economy of Ukraine. And besides, to help the state save money due to competition in the auction,” explains Vasily Zadvorny, General Director of the Prozorro State Enterprise, in the article “Return to transparency - for all purchases, except for defense”.

In addition, in conditions of a shortage of funds, the efficiency of their spending comes to the fore.. Many customers carried out open purchases even during the war, in four months more than 5,000 entrepreneurs participated in 6,000 auctions and helped the state save UAH 550 million.

For example, Ukrposhta returned to purchases at Prozorro a month after the start of a full-scale war. On 40 purchases of Ukrposhta in Prozorro, savings reached UAH 34.2 million, or 22% of the planned cost. And in separate tenders, 18, 19 and even 24 participants competed.

According to Zadvorny, the return of control over purchases that are not related to defense needs will stop many abuses..

“Thanks to the publication of all purchases that are not related to the defense industry or critical infrastructure, you and I will be able to monitor what and at what prices the state buys. I am sure that the very need to publish purchases will be able to stop a lot of abuse. And the rest will immediately become visible to society and control bodies,” he continues..

However, this government decision ran into a misunderstanding on the part of representatives of local government, as jeopardizing the country's defense capability and the ability to make quick purchases for the needs of our army and urgent needs..

Zadvorny believes that local governments have no reason to worry. In the article, he cites the most resonant theses of the local authorities and explains how these issues can be resolved..

It's hard to buy anything on Prozorro due to the constant increase in prices for goods.

“In fact, for contracts concluded under Decree No. 169, the Cabinet of Ministers removed restrictions on price increases in contracts by no more than 10%. So customers will be able to make purchases in accordance with current market conditions - and this is especially important for such critical goods as fuel and energy carriers, ”says the CEO of Prozorro.

This approach is logical in a state of martial law, when prices are unstable, their growth can exceed 10%, and obtaining a document on price fluctuations can be problematic.

Due to tenders, Prozorro will have to buy the cheapest, which means low-quality goods, works and services.

“It’s strange to hear about this, because what you buy through Prozorro directly depends on your requirements in the tender.. In addition, in simplified purchases, no one forbids you to clearly indicate what you want to buy, ”retorts Zadvorny.

So, the winner of the tender for a product without any requirements, with a very high probability, will be the supplier of the cheapest home-made product. But it is possible to hold a tender for a certified product with proven effectiveness, clearly indicating what exactly is needed..

Due to the need to make purchases at Prozorro, local governments are already having to evict internally displaced persons from schools and kindergartens.

“The issue of accommodation for IDPs and the construction of temporary housing for them is a really big challenge for the state and local self-government. However, this is in no way related to the need to hold tenders for current repairs before the start of the school year,” the official adds..

Administrations can start tendering now, but set a completion date for the end of August. And migrants do not need to be evicted from kindergartens and schools today.

The effect of the return of purchases on Prozorro can already be observed, writes Zadvorny. In the two weeks that have passed since the new rules appeared, government customers from all over Ukraine have announced more than six thousand purchases. UAH 26 million was saved in purchases where the auction was held - 10% of the planned funds.

The restoration of Ukraine has already begun, and where circumstances allow, the state should be accountable to society, the author believes. But it will not be possible to return the level of transparency that was before February 24 until the end of the war.. And purchases for defense needs will remain outside Prozorro for a long time.

“But to completely lose this transparency, one of the important achievements of Ukrainian society after the Revolution of Dignity, due to the Russian invasion, would be too great a gift to our enemy,” concludes Zadvorny.

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The confrontation between local and central authorities escalated in connection with the return of public procurement to the Prozorro system. By law, communities are required to finance TROs and help the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, the return of tenders took place against the backdrop of the absence of a state prepayment mechanism (this is how Western suppliers work), the inclusion of which the local medical authorities have been demanding from the government for the second month.. What together, as the mayors say, blocked the available free resources in local budgets and the ability to quickly make defense purchases.

So what is more important is the speed of direct purchases or transparency with tenders and justifications in the Prozorro system? And what really happened after returning to the Prozorro process? The position of the Association of Cities of Ukraine last week in an interview with ZN. UA was voiced by the Mayor of Dnipro Boris Filatov. The position of the State Enterprise "